The Secret Journal Of Meteora Österreich
by Citsimsan
Summary: Her companions know her as the good-natured librarian that will protect the world from the forces of the Military Uniform Princess. But is that image of her real? Or is it just a facade to disguise her evil intentions? Rediscover Re:Creators from the point of view of the most cunning criminal mastermind ever known: Meteora Österreich! Not an AU, but a reinterpretation of canon.
1. The Plan Begins

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 0: THE PLAN BEGINS**

Freedom! Freedom at last!

For too long I have been trapped in a library in the middle of nowhere. Trapped in a collapsing world where people did nothing but wait so a hero would solve their problems. Seriously, I heard that peasants just stood in the middle of the town and asked people to look for their lost cow or kill a group of rats instead of doing it themselves. Lazy and pathetic, all of them. Not that the nobles or the scholars were any better. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

My name is Meteora Österreich. This is my story.

Once, I was a librarian at the Library of a Thousand Miles Kust Wunderkammer, at the end of the Last Tableland. I still don't know why we had a library there. I mean, it was right before the domains of a dark menace that threatened our world. We had few visitors, mostly overrated mass murderers dressed in the belongings they had stolen from too many victims to count.

"Adventurers", they called them.

My duty in the library was to greet said thugs and bore them with lore until they left. Theoretically, one day a hero would come to defeat Evil (with capital 'e'!) and I would have to pass on the secret of Zalkazan. To be honest, I'm not sure if I did it already. My memories of past, present and future were foggy. Sometimes, I felt as if I only existed to be in that place at that moment, and the rest was just a bunch of nothingness.

The _she_ came. And I found out I was right.

00000

Who was she? No one important. Just a twin-tailed large ham dressed in a military uniform, putting on airs as if she was some sort of royalty. I think I will call her "Military Uniform Princess". So original.

The thing is, I was dealing with the latest brute that had come to our library when she appeared. She started talking about some nonsense, said that her master "liked me" (of course she liked me; I'm the greatest sage in the world, after all) and then attacked me. Like that. It was very rude of her. Thankfully, I always carry with me my trusted Magic Book. Yes, I call it "Magic Book". Yes, I know that naming things is not my forte. But crushing people like bugs with my magic is. So stop smiling.

Unfortunately, the Military Uniform Bi… I mean, the Military Uniform Princess had her own magic too. Annoying flying swords and an even more annoying 'Holopsicon', whatever that means, which threw me across the barriers of the world until I landed in some sort of dystopia where you couldn't see the stars at night, the seas were poisoned with toxic chemicals and the rulers of the land were chosen by plebeians. The horror.

The Military Uniform Princess soon followed. She looked sooooo smug. And she started talking again.

" _Blah, blah, blah, I summoned you, blah, blah, blah, land of the gods, blah, blah, blah, you are a fictional character from a video game, blah, blah blah, muh revolution, blah, blah, blah, muh punishment, blah, blah, blah..._ "

After a while, I stopped listening to her. I hate monologuing if I don't do it myself.

One thing was clear to me: I had been transported to another world where I was but a fictional character made to entertain others. After the initial shock, I was thrilled. Everything made sense now! My confusing memories from the library, the moronic attitudes of my people, the suicidal rulership of the lands, the senseless economy system… It was just a game!

But there was more: now I was free to change my own story. Better yet, if what the Military Uniform Princess said was true, I could find my own author and make him do the changes. I could become omnipotent and omniscient! The Goddess-Empress of the Universe! No, scratch that, the Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse sounds much better.

By that time, the mysterious twin-tailed brat had finished her speech and waited for my response.

She had offered an alliance to go against the gods. Tempting, but I had to refuse. For if I want to become the rightful Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse, a person with the power and knowledge to bring fictional characters to life isn't an ally. She is a rival. A very dangerous rival.

The Military Uniform Princess was disappointed by my answer, but she let me go… after some 'heated' dialogue. I'm going to kill her one of these days.

00000

Now I'm on my own. But I prefer it this way. However, if I'm to face that brat again, I will need more power. Weapons. Lots of them.

I check my Magic Book for clues. This land of the gods is horrible. Have you seen their history? So dreadful. I know I have complained about my people, but frankly, I have seen demons with more humane qualities than the inhabitants of this sorry excuse for a world. They need a strong hand to guide them. Or perhaps they should be purged from the face of the planet so nature can start again from scratch. According to my book, nuking them from orbit is "the only way to be sure".

Sadly, there are no nukes in this country. It seems it's called Japan, and my video game comes from the sick mind of one of their nationals. Which explains why their language is exactly the same as in my world. Convenient. It doesn't explain why everyone there had German-sounding names, though.

Still, Japan does have an army. Very small compared to others, but I'm not looking for their soldiers. I'm looking for their weapons.

There is a military camp not far from here. I've been making a list of what I want: anti-tank missiles, machine guns, hand grenades… I will go there, I will take what I need and I will face the Military Uniform Princess once again. Then, I will kill her, I will throw her body into a garbage dump and I will erase any evidence of her. Only then I will be free to pursue my goals of universal rewriting and ascension to godhood.

My plan has just begun. Soon, the land of the gods will kneel before the great Meteora Österreich! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

…

Maybe I should practice my evil laugh a bit more.

* * *

 **Author's notes:** Once, in some comments about the series, I joked that Meteora could be a villain manipulating our heroes, which would explain some inconsistencies, plot holes and overlooked data. Not that I seriously believe it, but my friend Lord Nayrael suggested: why not make it a fanfiction story from that idea? So here I am.

Besides this prologue, which covers the events of Meteora's backstory prior to her first meeting with Souta and Selesia, expect a chapter per episode. I'll try to update as frequently as I can (and the readers of Kitsune no Mago now I can do a lot in that regard), but I'm not making any hard promises.

What I promise is that I'll stick to canon as much as I can. This is a writing exercise, after all, a reinterpretation of the events of the series from the point of view of a megalomaniac villain disguised as a soft-spoken and deadpan librarian rather than a whole new plot. So, beware SPOILERS! All the names from Meteora's background I took from the anime, and her list of weapons is not coincidental: as episode 5 revealed, she did steal those weapons from the JSDF. Such a heinous criminal!

Will this little experiment of mine work? Who knows. But I hope the ride will be a bit enjoyable at the very least ;)


	2. Princess Tomato

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 1: PRINCESS TOMATO**

It's been a difficult week. Living in this horrid world isn't as easy as I thought it would be.

After getting the weapons I needed, my first priority was to find shelter and some money. Like the adventurers of my world, I started by hunting rats, pigeons and other small creatures. Everyone knows that when you kill an animal you can get coins, gemstones and random loot. It's one of the basic laws of nature.

However, to my surprise, none of the animals I killed dropped anything of value. No matter how hard I searched their bloody entrails, there was nothing but meat and bones. Useless vermin. When I tried to sell their remains, people looked at me as if I was mad. At first I thought it was because I had gone to the wrong shopkeeper, but I got the same reaction everywhere. Sometimes, they even threatened to call the local enforcers if I didn't leave immediately. At the end of the day, I decided to check my Magic Book to find out the reason of such ignominy. It was either that or burning the next shop to the ground.

Now I understand. The laws of nature here work differently. Animals and monsters don't spawn continuously, and they don't drop loot either. Also, there are strict rules about killing animals in many countries. Contrary to my world, killing a very rare specimen won't give you fame and riches. In fact, it's more likely that you will end up in jail!

The 'land of the gods' is crazy.

I had to get by with the vermin food I got, lighting a fire and cooking it. I had to slept outside or in diners. I had never felt such a disgrace in all my life. Yet I was determined to endure. I needed to be patient. Take my time, learn about this hellhole of a world by using my Magic Book. Sooner or later, the Military Uniform Princess would appear again. With my superior firepower, I would take her down. Then my plan to take over the multiverse could begin.

And today, finally, my patience has paid off.

00000

A city-wide commotion. People looking to the sky. Police activity in the streets. News channels talking about a "mysterious flying object over Yoyogi". It's _her_. It has to be her. I have to go there immediately.

Yes, there she is. The Military Uniform Princess that brought me to this world. But she isn't alone. What a surprise.

The other person is a red-haired girl, a sword fighter who can also fly. So she's probably another Creation. Ugh. More rivals. I would be happy to let them kill each other, but I'm afraid they are equally matched. That or they aren't taking their fight as a duel to the death. Disappointing. Well, I have some beautiful anti-tank missiles that will blow them to pieces in an instant. Now, if those two stopped flying around the park so I could take aim…

Oh, yes, that's what I was talking about. Face to face, clashing swords, talking about some vague stupidities. A perfect target. Time to pull the trigger. Bye, bye, you dolts.

BOOOOOM!

Ah, what a beautiful explosion! Beautiful, but also useless. Those freaking flying swords got in the way. Now, not only I haven't managed to kill any of them, I have alerted them to my presence. The red-haired girl has put some distance between us and looks puzzled. The Military Uniform Princess, on the other hand, doesn't even try to get away. She looks at me, as smug as ever.

" _Is that you, Meteora?"_ , she taunts me. _"Have you still not found your creator?"_

For all her show of confidence, I notice how she's activating her flying swords again. I should answer accordingly. If a picture is worth a thousand words, an ATM5 missile must be worth a thousand pictures. And I still have 5 of them.

BOOOOOM! BOOOOOM! BOOOOOM! BOOOOOM! BOOOOOM!

More explosions. Yoyogi Park is engulfed in smoke and flames. Did I hit any civilians? Well, who cares. They're just background characters.

Unfortunately, the flying swords protected the Military Uniform Princess. I didn't manage to hurt her. Not even a scratch. Dammit!

" _Never mind"_ , she says in that annoyingly condescending tone of hers. _"Even though you and I have both been transported here, we still lack sufficient strength and manpower"_.

I frown. Has she managed to see through my plans? This is worrisome. An all-out war is the last thing I want at this moment. It pains me to say this, but she's right. I don't have a power base or my own resources. Discretion was to be my weapon. I hoped that the twin-tailed brat would do the same, but if she's preparing for an open conflict I'm at a severe disadvantage. I can't summon new allies out of thin air.

And she knows it.

" _A riot is precisely what I wish for"_ , she says, as if she was reading my mind, _"but the symphony would not sound harmonious without the correct headcount. A glorious song requires the presence of all the players"_.

The Military Uniform Princess turns to her red-haired foe.

" _I shall pay you another visit, Your Highness Selesia. On behalf of this foul world, I welcome you with all my heart"_.

Aaaaand there she goes, disappearing in a cloud of blue pixels. I'm so angry right now that I would bomb this place if I hadn't already done it.

Ok, let's calm down. This is a loss, but I must never forget to keep my cool. It helps that I'm not the most emotional person around. I've been told that I'm not very expressive; more accurately, I've been told that there are rocks with more facial expressions than me. I didn't believe it possible, but then I met those rocks. It was true. Sigh.

I should go.

" _Wait!"_

Who calls me? Oh, yeah, the red-haired grunt. She looks distressed.

" _Are you the same as me? Did you come from outside this world? Is what she said true?"_

So many questions! Honestly, I'm tempted to ignore her and keep going. If she's not a dumb mercenary, she should find out the answers to those questions on her own pretty quickly. Today I'm not in the mood to give lectures. So I just nod and fly away.

But it seems destiny has other plans for her and me.

00000

The red-haired girl is insistent. She has followed me. We have talked. And I have learned much.

Her name is… Frankly, I'm not sure how to write it. Selesia? Celestia? Selejia? Celejia? Damn katakana. I think I will call her 'Princess Tomato'. Because, you see, she has red hair. Red, like a tomato. And she is also a princess, or a noble, or someone important. In her world, I mean. Thus, 'Princess Tomato'. My best nickname yet.

I'm so proud of myself.

She comes from a world where heroes fight against an evil organization of sorts, the Avalon Brigade, by using giant robots in battle. Even without her robot, she has the features of your typical 'hero': brute force, animalistic reflexes, chronic idealism and lower-than-average intelligence.

At first, I didn't understand. Why would the Military Uniform Princess summon a character like that? Now I see it.

Amoral characters like me can share similar goals, but we are potential rivals. Meanwhile, simplistic heroes like this Tomato are very easy to manipulate. Feed them the right backstory and they will follow you blindly no matter how unsavoury your real goals are. Clever, very clever. But two can play the same game.

And that's exactly what I do. Like all adventurers, Princess Tomato takes me for a walking encyclopedia, a soft-spoken lore-machine that exists only to answer her questions. She lets me talk, and talk, and talk without questioning me in the slightest. I could tell her that the twin-tailed brat is a genocidal loony and that we have to put her down before she destroys the universe, and she would believe me right away. A perfect minion.

In fact, she's already proving to be useful. She tells me about a boy from this world who worships her as his idol. It should be easy to turn his house into a base of operations.

Wait for me, Military Uniform Princess. "Strength and manpower", you said? Soon, I'll have an army under my command!

I'm still hungry, though.

00000

It was difficult to find that guy's house. Even more difficult to enter without breaking the glass. Oh, well, I can always repair it. Actually, I should remodel the entire building. I admit the current one is cozy, but it doesn't scream 'power' and 'importance'.

I'm showing Tomato some diagrams when the so called "Mizushino Souta" enters the room. He is dumbfounded by our appearance there. Not that I can blame him. In the same situation, I would be dumbfounded too. Then, I would throw my most powerful spell at the intruders.

" _Oh"_. The princess is flustered, like a naughty kid caught in the middle of a prank. _"Welcome home"_.

I suppose introductions are in order.

00000

Well, when I said "introductions", I meant "introducing some food into my empty stomach".

Mizushino Souta is exactly as I pictured him. A friendless, spineless doormat that is incapable of saying 'no'. A background character. We drag him to the nearest SevenMart so we can taste all those marvellous foodstuffs my book revealed. Our bag is full as it is, but I still crave more.

" _Do you have the mayonnaise mentaiko flavor potato snacks?"_ , I ask.

" _Sorry, we don't carry that here"_.

A pity. While Tomato clumsily makes another petition, I gesture doormat-kun to come closer.

" _Money"_ , I tell him.

The boy is surprised, but as expected, he pays. He should feel honored. In my world, the greatest benefactors competed to fund the Library of a Thousand Miles. Still, I feel generous today. When I take over the multiverse, I will remember his part in bringing this delicious food to me.

Princess Tomato feels bad and apologizes, but me? I only have eyes for the food. Nevertheless, being polite doesn't hurt.

" _Thank you for the meal"_ , I say, as I search one of the bags he's carrying (of course he's carrying them, who else?). _"As a student, that must have been a little expensive for you, but it's a cheap price to pay for proof"._

Oh, what are those? Potatoes? Yummy.

" _If you still doubt the phenomenon just now then maybe next you should doubt the existence of the employee and the existence of the store. Or the possibility that your actions have dissociated from your cognition and are impossible to comprehend. After that, we enter the realm of solipsism and ontology. Or the only..."_

Honestly, I don't know what I'm saying anymore. It must be because of all those nights eating pigeon and rat, but these snacks are exquisite ambrosia for my eager mouth.

I keep babbling, but the effect is lost. Mizushino might be a doormat, but even he is clever enough to notice the pseudo-profound bullshit.

" _Was that a joke?"_ , he asks.

Oopsie, perhaps I should have tried harder. Playing the all-knowing sage is easy for me. I was literally written for that role. But if I don't take it seriously, my charade will be found out. I need their complete trust in me and my words.

" _I tried telling a joke to relax your heart"_ , I justify myself. _"Your heart should feel light right now"_.

" _It doesn't"_.

" _That was bad just now"_ , Princess Tomato adds. They both look at me as if I was a weirdo.

…

Maybe I should start looking for new minions, after all.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

-Yes, according to the timeline from episode 5, Meteora was around for at least a week in our world before she met Selesia and Souta.

-As for where she stayed all those days, Meteora mentions in episode 3 that she was willing to "sleep outside or spend the night in a diner", so we can get an idea of what she did back then.

-Meteora was surprisingly detailed about what she wanted in the supermarket. I can only imagine she checked her Magic Book for ideas. And yes, the shop is called SevenMart in the series.


	3. Magical Slowpoke Mamika

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 2: MAGICAL SLOWPOKE MAMIKA**

This. This is what I was talking about. Drinks, bread, sandwiches, chocolate thingies, ring-shaped thingies… A whole feast stands before my eyes. Take that, pigeons! This is civilized food!

I guess I should introduce myself to my host now. My new minion, Souta, has diligently worked to give me this food without uttering a complaint. Such an example of abject servility and emotionless obedience must be rewarded.

I stand up. Eating can wait.

" _My name is Meteora Österreich. I'm a librarian at the Library of a Thousand Miles Kunst Wunderkammer, at the end of the Last Tableland"_.

Doormat-kun's eyes are wide open. He recognizes my name. Good, good.

" _AVALKEN of Reminisce! That's right before the last area",_ he says. _"After the library, I couldn't save my game. Meteora said: 'if you are able to succeed...'"_

" _...make this sky blue once more. I remember those words too"_ , I finish for him. Please, don't remind me of my own lines. Who do you think I am, boy? I had memorized hundreds of books long before you played. Still, that can only mean one thing. _"That hero was you too. Was it a good journey, hero?"_

The boy blushes. Obviously, he didn't catch the irony in my words.

" _I'm not a hero"_ , he answers. Of course you aren't, you dolt. At best, you are a weak-willed teenager that has to use games such as mine to escape this dull, pathetic reality. The best you can aspire to is being a manservant or a meat shield. _"But it was a good game"_.

Keep smiling, Meteora. Remember your role. Don't spit him in his face.

" _I'm glad to hear that. But even so..."_ Keep smiling, keep smiling, keep sm… Agh, who cares? Time to make things clear. I'm nobody's puppet anymore. _"It wasn't my intention to contribute to your entertainment and I didn't realize what I was doing"_.

" _S-sorry"_.

Ugh, Doormat-kun is about to cry. Seriously, what a thin-skinned snowflake. I was trying to be polite and control myself. What will he do when he gets an actual insult? Kill himself? Still, I suppose I should back down a bit. My food supply depends on it.

" _I'm a little dull when it comes to the subtleties of human emotions. I might have sounded a little harsh. I'm the one who should apologize"_.

This is so humiliating. But I must endure. All for the good of the plan.

" _No, that's okay"_ , Souta says. _"But you really are Meteora, aren't you? The Sage of the End of the World. The Seeker of a Thousand Miles"_.

" _That's right"_ , Princess Tomato adds. _"Because of her I kind of feel like I understand this world now"_.

Yes! PRAISE ME! Praise me more! I'm feeling so satisfied right now that I tell my minions about my dear Magic Book. It's best if they understand from the beginning that I hold all the answers and that they can only dream of achieving my sapience. I must be thankful to my Creator, indeed, for giving me such an OP item.

Now that presentations are over, I should explain what I hope to achieve here.

Sadly, when I tell Souta that we will turn his house into our base of operations to search for the Military Uniform Princess, he's less than enthusiastic about the idea. I suppose that, no matter how passive a loser like him may be, every person has their limits. I'm tempted to use brute force to change his mind, but a willing minion is always more valuable than a forced slave.

" _We don't mean to cause you trouble. If there is something we can help you with, we will cooperate. Like homework, errands..."_

I would offer to satisfy his sexual needs, but according to my book these eunuchs only find sexual pleasure with 2D beings. If a real woman gets too close, they start bleeding. Must be some kind of bizarre allergy. Nevertheless, if his biological instincts end up overcoming his ingrained weakness, I can always use Tomato's body as payment.

" _N-no, it's okay"_.

" _Cooperation must be a barter. Please"_ , I insist.

" _Then… Can you do something about this room?"_

Certainly, his bedroom is a complete mess. Two broken windows, belongings everywhere, now the remains of our feast… It would be too simple to take a broom and a dustpan, but I sense an opportunity here.

I've always wanted my own Mage Tower.

00000

After casting some spells, we get out of the room.

" _I used Restoration Magic"_ , I explain. _"Please, wait around an hour for the room to be restored"_.

" _Oh, okay"_ , Souta mutters.

Neither he nor Princess Tomato ask more about my spells. Good, this way I don't have to make up any lies. True enough, I used some spells that technically fall under the 'Restoration Magic' label. But my goal is not merely to restore Souta's house to its previous state. That would be a waste of my magical talents.

No, I'm going to transform the whole building into a huge tower worthy of a sorcerer.

Still, the process can be complicated. Even in the best case scenario, collateral damage may be unavoidable. So it's better if we are not close when the transformation starts. I'm sorry for Souta's neighbors, though.

Also, this will serve as an experiment. Can my magic work as in my world, without me being present? We'll see.

But I have another problem at hand. We've run out of food and I'm still hungry.

00000

Mm, hamburgers. This place is called 'YcDonald's'. The food here lacks quality, but Souta's wallet can only endure so much. Still, the smells are incredible. And the flavors! When I remember all those days eating rat, I think I'm about to cry.

Princess Tomato looks at me with a strange face.

" _You eat so much"_ , she comments.

I finish my refreshment before I reply.

" _Sorry. The food in this world has such multilayered flavors and is very delicious. I think it's due to the large amount of information in this world..."_

That's it. Disguise your appetite with a scientific-sounding excuse.

" _Blah, blah, blah, information in this world is multilayered, blah, blah, blah, represented by a single number, blah, blah, blah, several orders of magnitude, blah, blah, blah, manifestations of possibilities, blah, blah, blah..."_

I'm great. No one will try to contradict me after so much exposition.

" _What? The things these people thought up just for fun, are you saying these things determine our world? How stupid"_ , Tomato says.

Grrrrr! She's not as dumb as I thought she would be. More pressure is needed.

" _I understand your concern, but it's nothing more than your displeasure at discovering your reason for existence"_ , I say. In layman's terms: deal with it. If discovering that you were created to satisfy the wet dreams of horny teenagers disturbs you, it's your problem.

Now, I think Souta mentioned something about visiting a mall, a comic store, and… a zoo?

00000

Yes, the zoo. A very nice place. So full of strange and beautiful animals. I imagine them boiled, roasted, fried, coated in batter… It makes my mouth water.

By this time, my exposition is ending. I have talked, and talked, and talked. I never imagined I could get tired of listening to my own voice, but I'm at my limit. Still, I take my time to badmouth the Military Uniform Princess. I keep it vague, just in case I need to tweak the story later, but I talk about her attempting to "remake our worlds", "make the story worlds and the land of the gods collide" and that she's "hiding her true intentions". I also praise Tomato's decision not to join her.

Ha, ha, ha. They believe me. A pity the Military Uniform Princess isn't here to defend her reputation, isn't it?

" _Well, that might be part of the story made by someone else somewhere"_ , Tomato points out.

Damn, that's a good observation. Could it be that the twin-tailed brat is under a Creator's control?

" _I do not disagree. Actually, I think the possibility is high"_ , I say. Make it look as if I thought of that idea first.

Princess Tomato sends me another weird glare. Obviously, she doesn't like that I seized her theory as if it were mine. But Souta laughs at her. Good job, my minion. Undermine her intellectual self-esteem. I don't want her opposing my theories again.

Sadly, neither Tomato nor Souta know more about my rival. We don't even know the real name of the Military Uniform Princess. Or what her true goals are… but I can always make up another story for that.

But first things first. Let's check how my new and flamboyant Mage Tower is doing.

00000

WHAT.

This is worse than I thought. Not a single change! The bedroom is as we left it. Still a mess. Remember that broom and dustpan I mentioned? Well, guess who's using them right now. No, not the eunuch. He's working for me at this moment, looking for my Creator. No, not Princess Tomato either. She's too busy fawning over Doormat-kun's computer.

" _How convenient"_ , she says. _"Our controllers have a similar function"_.

Puh-lease.

" _Even my Magic Book can do easy things like that"_ , I point out. _"And harder things too"_.

" _Even though the magic for restoring the room didn't work?"_

Ugh. Certainly, having a broom in my hand doesn't help my case. Again, Princess Tomato is proving to be sharper than I expected. If things continue like this, she might become a liability. Manipulating a birdbrain goody-two-shoes is one thing. Manipulating a relatively sensible individual is a very different matter.

Fortunately, at that moment Souta finds the information I seek.

" _Meteora, this company is the Creator you're looking for"_.

Titan Digitalsoft. I see. It's not far from here, but it isn't close either. Princess Tomato and I start discussing ways to go there. Flying would be faster, but it would attract too much attention. I don't want to alert the local authorities or, worse, the Military Uniform Princess. But Souta is distressed. He raises another objection.

" _Normally, you don't go meet people you have no relationship with. You need a good reason to meet someone"_.

I have a good reason! I'm the great Meteora Österreich! They should be lining up to bow before me. And even if that weren't the case, is this another difference between our worlds? From poor peasants to the courts of kings, people in my world could go anywhere and start a conversation. And now you're telling me that extreme antisocial behavior is the norm in the land of the gods? For once, I have to agree with Tomato: these people have no empathy.

Another thing I have to correct once I take over the world.

Souta tries to look for Tomato's Creators, but the result isn't very different. In her case, it's not a video game company, but an anime studio. More important people who won't talk with us. Argh. I was thinking of using Princess Tomato as a guinea pig for rewriting experiments (important rule for overlords: even if you covet ultimate power, never experiment with yourself first), but even that's going to be more difficult than I thought.

I need to think. I look around the room. It seems Doormat-kun loves games and anime. Meh. Oh, and he draws too? Perhaps he's a potential Creator?

" _Souta, are you the Creator of a world somewhere?"_ , I ask him. If only I could use him for my experiments… It would be too much of a coincidence that the Military Uniform Princess transported one of his characters here, but a slight chance is better than none. Didn't Tomato say that the twin-tailed brat recognized him somehow? Perhaps it's already happened. _"The things here, I feel like they're references for that purpose"_.

" _But I haven't drawn anything recently"_.

I have to keep myself from rolling my eyes. Boy, I don't care about your artist's block or your pusillanimity. If I want my minion to be a Creator, he will be.

" _If you stop training, the skills you acquired will get rusty fast. Your unborn world is waiting for you so that it can join the millions of stories in existence like the stars in a galaxy. Continue your training"_.

It's an order.

In the meantime, something else catches my attention. In my hands I have one of the light novels that tell the (boring) story of Princess Tomato and her vanilla love interest. _Elemental Symphony of Sword Art Mobile Suit German-sounding Nonsense_ , or something like that. Honestly, they all look the same to me. But here's the thing: there is only one author in the credits page.

" _I see"_ , I mutter. _"That's right. For an individual..."_

...rewriting a character or a setting should be easier. And they would be more vulnerable to manipulation and coercion. Perfect.

We need to find this 'Matsubara Takashi' ASAP.

00000

Souta sighs.

" _I wonder if he's really going to come"_.

I can't say I don't share his concern. We are in a skyscraper, waiting for Mr. Matsubara to appear. We enticed him with a cleverly written email and a picture of Princess Tomato. But will that be enough?

" _That is unknown, but compared to a company the probability is higher since we identified an individual"_ , I tell my minion. _"And I read several interviews about Mr. Matsubara. He's an unscrupulous person with a lot of curiosity"_.

A depraved pervert with few moral qualms whose curiosity gets the better of him. Just the person I need for my experiments… if he comes, that's it.

Thankfully, my luck is great again. The universe loves me.

" _He's here"_ , I say. A middle-aged man blushing like an inexperienced teenager on his first date. He's losing hair and he doesn't know how to shave properly. Yep, that's Matsubara Takashi.

Princess Tomato is not impressed.

" _A careless and stupid person"_ , she says. She looks as if she's about to puke.

I agree. But for now, he's our best option. So do your thing, Princess Tomato. Befriend him, entice him, seduce him. Do whatever it takes so he can become my test subject.

Negotiations start. Not very well. Less than a minute has passed and she's already threatening him with her sword. I understand the sentiment, but I need him alive. Souta and I rush to stop her and explain things to the Creator. However, we are cut short. A new problem has appeared. A short-sized, pink-haired problem surrounded by a flock of shouting children.

" _I found you!"_ , she says.

Souta doesn't need to warn me. I understand. Such a stupid-looking girl isn't from this world.

That can only mean one thing: the Military Uniform Princess sent her. We're in trouble.

00000

Presentations are awkward, to put it lightly. This pink muffin is such a birdbrain that she can't remember our names properly. At least she remembers her own name.

" _I'm Mamika, Kirameki Mamika"_.

She continues by giving us her backstory. Seriously, who cares? The only thing I pick is that she was given the power to turn into a Magical Sl-something. Magical Slowpoke? Well, that sounds close enough.

We are interrupted when Mr. Matsubara starts lusting after the underage pink muffin. A pervert indeed. Tomato's death glare is getting worse. She asks the Magical Slowpoke:

" _So? Mamika. What do you want?"_

" _I heard about it. From the Military Uniform Princess"_. AHA! I knew it! My rival sent her! _"She said that this world is the place making our worlds. The people in our worlds who are in trouble or in pain can be saved with the power of the people in this world"_.

Ah. I see. The twin-tailed brat is playing the role of the "good revolutionary" to brainwash this childish girl. After her failure with Princess Tomato, she probably decided to polish her recruitment technique. Unfortunately for her, I have already instructed my minions not to believe her. Magical Slowpoke Mamika's sorry arguments won't hold sway over them.

And she breaks down.

 _"Why?"_ , she asks, tears in her eyes. _"Why can't you understand me?"_

Suddenly, she takes out an amulet, which becomes a wand, which transforms her clothes. Now she wouldn't be out of place in Halloween, Carnival or a gravure idol magazine. The kids that surround her approve enthusiastically. Some of their fathers approve too, more discreetly.

Princess Tomato takes her transformation as a declaration of war. She approaches her.

 _"Selesia, don't cause a commotion_ ", I warn her. At first, I thought this Magical Slowpoke was a joke. But now I'm feeling strong magical energies from that wand. If the Military Uniform Princess sent her alone, it must be because of a good reason. Obviously, it's not for her negotiation skills. Perhaps…

 _"Tell that to her!"_ , Tomato complains.

CRASH!

Aaaaand there they go.

00000

Oh my gods. Oh my gods. Oh my gods. Oh my… HOLY SHIT! That Magical Slowpoke is hardcore!

Her hear-shaped missiles are cheesy and her aim is poor, but she's blowing up parts of the skyscraper at will. I wish I had that power. She can fly too. Princess Tomato is at a disadvantage. I suppose I should help her… but I could also pretend I'm helping the civilians around the building while I keep watching the battle. Puppets can be replaced, but knowledge is power.

Wow. The pink muffin is shooting at point-blank range. That must have hurt.

Now Princess Tomato is on the ground. I'd expect Magical Slowpoke Mamika to finish her, but the kid is visibly distressed. She's not used to this level of violence. She's even trying to help Tomato, but the princess is having none of it. Maybe I should get closer, hear what they are saying.

" _Don't be so proud!"_ , Mamika begs her. _"I just..."_

Ouch! A centimeter closer and Tomato would have cut her in half. Nice move, my minion! But now Magical Slowpoke is on guard.

" _Your story was probably filled with reasonable people"_ , Princess Tomato says. _"Remember this one thing: if you use force to serve justice, no one is going to follow your idealistic scenario. No one's going to agree to that"_.

Eh… You would be surprised, Tomato. I should lend her my Magic Book one day so she can read Thomas Hobbes' _Leviathan_ and Max Weber's theories about the monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force.

On the other hand, maybe I shouldn't. A simple-minded minion is a manageable minion.

In any case, it's not as if the pink muffin has read philosophy either. Her reply basically consists in making an even bigger heart-shaped missile and throwing it at Tomato's face. Ugh, I'm afraid I'm going to lose one of my minions now. But I should look on the bright side: if Magical Slowpoke Mamika was so shocked after causing a bit of destruction, murdering a person in cold blood will put her over the edge. It will be child's play to appeal to her sense of guilt and childish ethics, and convince her that she's following the wrong leader.

Yes, yes, this is a good opportunity. Go in peace, Princess Tomato. Know that your death will not be in vain. Soon, I will have a new minion, one far younger and more powerful…

BOOOOOOM!

A big explosion, but… No, this cannot be. Not only Princess Tomato is alive, but there's another figure among the rubble. A purple-haired punk with sunglasses, a golden chain, gold rings, and a long katana over his shoulder.

" _Who are you?"_ , Mamika asks him.

She's scared. She should be. This new guy doesn't look like a hero, precisely.

" _Why does everyone have to say their name in your story?"_ , he mocks her.

He raises his sword and the smoke disappears. Then, he summons a ghostly warrior to aid him.

" _I don't like to use this against girls, but I'm not the type of guy that would stop himself from using this to smash in your brain. I'm warning you, I'm strong. In the world I used to live in apparently I was the final boss"_.

Oh, my. Another fictional character. A violent thug with evil eyes and a cruel smile that seems to have been a nefarious villain in the past.

I think I like him.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

-This was longer than I thought, even after I tried to summarize the events. And I know too well that episodes 3, 4 and 5 are even more exposition heavy, so there will be a lot of instances of Meteora to showcase in future updates. As much as I like Re:Creators, I believe they were far too heavy-handed with the exposition in episodes 2 to 5. I even counted the amount of exposition per episode. If someone is interested in the raw numbers, I still have them.

-This Meteora sees herself as the only true rival of the Military Uniform Princess. And the same she fantasizes about manipulating everyone to do her bidding, she believes her rival is doing the same and that everything MUP does is according to MUP's plan. She's not wrong, but she isn't completely right either, as recent events in the anime prove.

-You know, after rewatching episode 2, it's true that Meteora was surprisingly passive during Selesia's and Mamika's fight. Even after finishing helping the civilians, she kept her distance. During the final explosion, she was basically floating around, watching but not moving nor casting a spell. Dubious writing? No! More proof that she's secretly EVIL! XD

-In Star Wars terms, if Meteora is Palpatine, Selesia is the Count Dooku to Mamika's Anakin. Or at least that's what Meteora would wish.

-I will headcanon that Meteora spent some of her time before she met our heroes reading history and philosophy, looking for sound strategies to take over the multiverse. That's why she knows about Hobbes and Weber.


	4. A Misleading Experiment

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 3: A MISLEADING EXPERIMENT**

" _How could this…? This isn't supposed to happen!"_

I understand your shock, Mamika. The Military Uniform Princess probably assured you that we couldn't match your power. And she was right, up to a point. But after the sudden appearance of this… How did Souta call him? Mirokuji Yuuya. Yes, after his appearance, now we have the upper hand. He's a beast.

A handsome beast, I might add.

" _I hate dealing with girls who think they can get away with things by crying"_ , he says. _"You're friends with that Military Uniform Kid, aren't you? Are you going to do it or not? Make up your mind already! Hey! Three, two..."_

Perhaps I should intervene. As enjoyable as it would be to see Magical Slowpoke paying the price for her naivety, I still want to turn her to our side. I mean, look at those smoking craters! Who needs anti-tank missiles when you have a magical girl?

However, another challenger appears.

A horse. A freaking flying horse. What, every fictional character can fly now? That's not what my Magic Book said! In any case, her rider, an armored blonde with a very big spear, clashes with Yuuya and grabs the Magical Slowpoke. Then, both of them leave. Obviously, she must be another of the twin-tailed brat's agents, sent to secure an escape route in case the pink muffin failed. Damn. The Military Uniform Princess is one of the most clever strategists I've ever seen. A pity I'll have to kill her to ensure my total dominance over the multiverse.

Meanwhile, Princess Tomato is not very happy with her rescuer.

" _You!"_

I think of stopping her, but thankfully her pitiful body can't do much. Rather than getting angry, Yuuya even offers her a hand to stand up.

" _Hey! Let's get away from here"_.

What a gentleman. I definitely want him in my court. For purely pragmatical reasons, of course.

00000

We are in a diner not far from our last battlefield. The law enforcers rush there, oblivious to our presence. Morons. In the meantime, we have some lunch. Yuuya has a big appetite. As for Princess Tomato, she's complaining like a crybaby about her injuries. Come on, they aren't so serious! You just faced several explosions and were thrown against the ground at match speed, don't whine so much.

Still, I guess I should offer some sympathy? Minions who believe their overlords don't care about them tend to be unruly.

" _Sorry. Recovery Magic isn't listed in my character description"_ , I say. Well, I suppose I could have used my Magic Book to learn that too… but let's pin the blame on my Creator. Better that than having to become the healer of the party. Healers are just glorified renewable health potions, not true leaders.

" _Then, how about a hospital?"_ , Souta suggests.

Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention that we dragged Doormat-kun and Tomato's Creator with us. The boy is visibly distressed by Tomato's pain. What a bother.

But who cares. Yuuya now has all my attention. He's rude, eats without manners and wears sunglasses indoors, but… he's so cool! Calm down, my heart, calm down. You are Meteora Österreich, future Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse, not an infatuated teenager. Let's keep things professional, shall we?

" _I want to know how much you know about the current situation"_ , I tell him.

Yeah, that sounds neutral enough. Thank my Creator(s) who gave me a deadpan face. In situations like this, it's a divine blessing.

He talks. Definitely, there's a brain behind that handsome face of his. Contrary to Princess Tomato, he didn't need a teacher to get the gist of the situation. Good. He's also cautious enough not to spill all the beans even after Tomato presses him for more information about the Military Uniform Princess. Clever and sensible, but I really need that info.

Maybe I should entice him? I could seduce him, offer him a date… No, no, no! That would be too evident, too crass. A woman's weapon is subtlety. Yes, let's make it subtle. A dinner between the two of us, perhaps, intimate and cozy. Which man would say 'no' to me? But don't make it sound too romantic. I have to choose my words carefully...

" _I'll trade you a meal for the information. Tell me what you know"_ , I say. Very professional.

He… He… He has accepted! YES! I've just got a date! Take that, you awful lesser scholars of the library who thought I could never manage to go out with a real hunk. They were just envious because I was much more intelligent than them. My sex-appeal is off the charts.

Wait, wait. Don't rush. Dinner will be later. First, Yuuya honors his part of the deal by telling us in detail about his experiences.

" _Blah, blah, blah, transported here a while ago, blah, blah, blah, looks like a kid, blah, blah, blah, what a snob, blah, blah, blah, an old guy, blah, blah, blah, got into a fight, blah, blah, blah…"_

He's good at exposition. Almost as good as me.

He's a supporter of a "popularity power" theory. He thinks we're here because we're popular. Right. He also suggests that, since we have Princess Tomato and her dumb-looking Creator with us, we should try "revision" with her. To tweak her character description to see if rewriting of single individuals is possible.

" _If the Creator can change the world he created, then he can change the abilities of the people he created too, right?"_ , he says. _"It's so obvious"_.

Obvious indeed, but until now I thought only me and (most likely) the Military Uniform Princess realized the true extent of the rewriting. Interestingly, he doesn't care much about finding his own Creator. It surprises me a bit, but his explanation makes sense:

" _The author, or whatever you'd like to call it, is just a normal person, like everyone you see here"_ , he says, pointing out to the human sheep that are in the diner. _"Not a god like we imagine"_.

He's right, of course. The people in this world are useless worms who can't fly, can't do magic, die easily and don't have stats. So inefficient. Their only power is their imagination and, frankly, they waste it on too many light novels. But there's hope for them: if they can turn me into the Goddess-Empress this universe deserves, I'll make sure they direct their energies to more productive endeavors. Like building pyramids.

Sometimes, I think I'm too kind-hearted for my own good.

Sadly, all good things come to an end and it's time to part ways. Yuuya is a free spirit, an independent punk that won't be swayed to my side as easily as Princess Tomato and Doormat-kun. He says it himself: it's in his character description. But I'm patient. We'll meet again to share that meal and perhaps he'll change his mind after lots of great se… I mean, great conversation. I wasn't thinking of anything lewd, so d-don't get the wrong idea, okay?

Now, I suppose that it's time for Princess Tomato to become our little guinea pig. For science!

00000

For all his many, many, many flaws, Mr. Matsubara is devoted to become a good minion and quickly calls his assistant, a glasses girl called Marine, for our little experiment. She's the illustrator of his crappy novels. Honestly, I wouldn't want her near my character design, but I suppose her style fits the teenage fanservice fantasy that is Princess Tomato. I mean, did you see that boob window?

Ironically, Tomato is angrier at her writer than at her illustrator. While Glasses Girl tries to process the sudden influx of information, my minion and her author argue like a brat and her deadbeat dad.

" _I have a hard life, and it's all because you decided to make me weak in my character description!"_ , she complains.

" _I have a lot of other things to think about! Just because you think I can change the descriptions, I'm not going to make you invincible!"_ , he replies.

Sigh. It seems I'll have to be the adult of the group. Again.

I explain my theories about character rewriting (without alerting them to my true goals) and invite them to put their emotions aside so we can proceed. Glasses Girl is still puzzled about why she was summoned. Truly, I don't know if we need her, but her name appeared in the credits page of the light novels. Better safe than sorry.

First things first, though. Before the artist can draw, the writer has to write.

00000

" _Is this one line enough?"_ , Mr. Matsubara asks.

Following my precise instructions, Tomato's Creator has just written a spell for her character description. Nothing too overpowered; I want my minions strong, not impossible to control. And nothing too complex either; as a fighter, Princess Tomato may botch what black mages master in level 2. I've called it the Flame Chant. Because when you chant it, it creates flames. Clever, right? My naming skills are getting better and better.

Unfortunately, Tomato's chanting skills leave a lot to be desired.

" _Ajarakamokuren, kyuraisu"_ , she says, so unconvincingly that it shames the very concept of magic itself. _"Ajarakamokuren, kyuraisu! I said kyuraisu!"_

Of course, nothing happens. As a guinea pig, Princess Tomato sucks. She's quick enough to blame her Creator, though.

Still, despite her lukewarm efforts, something should have happened.

" _Maybe it's the amount of information or the conditions"_ , I wonder out loud. _"Anyway, something is missing. Ms. Marine, I want you to draw this scene. If the amount of the information about the created world increases, it would be more likely to materialize. That's my current hypothesis"_.

" _But there's no context for it"_ , she replies.

Context? For the love of the gods, we're talking about a cheap light novel written for the lowest common denominator. "Walking cliché says something stupid and activates ass-pull power" is the bread and butter of your medium. Now you are worrying about context? Argh! If only this could have been a JRPG, these video games are real masterpieces of writing and worldbuilding. And I'm not saying this because I come from one, not at all.

Sigh. Let Mr. Matsubara write a scene for her. It's not as if every minute we losehere is more time for the Military Uniform Princess to strengthen her forces…

00000

Ugh, waiting without doing anything is boring enough, but now Glasses Girl and Princess Tomato are trying to be BFFs. Even my intelligent comments are ignored.

Damn, I feel left out.

Wait! No, no, that isn't what I wanted to say. Me? Left out? Puh-lease. As the boss, of course I can't take part in such childish comradeship exercises. I'm the future master of this world, after all. What I really meant is that I feel that they don't pay proper reverence to my greatness. Yeah, that sounds more logical.

Nevertheless, their conversation enters an intriguing territory when Ms. Marine starts airing Tomato's most miserable moments without an ounce of care, politeness or decency.

" _It must have been hard being betrayed by your best friend"._

" _Huh?"_

" _I would have never guessed that Hydla was connected to the Avalon Brigade"._

" _Wait! Is what you said about Hydla true?"_

" _Hydla killed Nics"._

" _NICS DIES?"_

Princess Tomato is shocked. And distressed. And confused. It looks as if she didn't know any of it. But how can it be, if it was the story plotted by her Creators? Then Souta's words fall like a hammer:

" _I see. Selesia, you came from the anime, so you don't know what happened in the newest book"._

FUCK. A thousand times fuck. He's right. He's definitely right. And here I thought his lack of neurons was irredeemable.

It explains everything: why Tomato can't remember things that were definitely written by Matsubara and published for the general public to read, and why our previous little experiment failed miserably. Oh, gods. It means that, no matter what we do here, this Princess Tomato will never change. This one comes from the anime. The Princess Tomato from the light novels must be somewhere else, in her own fictional world still not touched by the Military Uniform Princess.

This is worrying. Should I stop the experiment? It's going to be a waste of time, after all… or maybe not?

Let's pretend Doormat-kun's words were just some nonsense unworthy of our attention. The experiment will fail, of course. But that itself is an opportunity. If I convince them that "rewriting" is not possible, or at least not as easy as it seems, my minions won't try to get stronger behind my back. And I can use it as another argument against the Military Uniform Princess, more "proof" that she's lying and shouldn't be trusted.

Yes, yes, this is a good plan. Let Mr. Matsubara write. Let Ms. Marine draw. Let them fail. And then, they'll believe whatever I say. Mwahahaha!

I'm so evil I could kick a puppy right now.

00000

The wait is long. In the meantime, Souta makes coffee for us. An indulgence. Good minion.

Finally, the scene is written and illustrated. Something about Princess Tomato going to save a child who was caught by the Avalon Brigade. I would ask why that Avalon Brigade would capture a child and why Tomato would go fight them with a spell instead of bringing a full battalion of mecha to subdue the enemy, but I really don't care. "Context", huh. Glasses Girl also gave her a new design for her weapon and uniform. She has certainly surpassed herself. Now Princess Tomato looks even more ridiculous than before.

" _Additional information has been added"_ , I tell Tomato. _"If the amount of information was the problem, we'll know for sure with this"_.

I already know. And if these people were a bit brighter, they would know too. It's almost hilarious how no one has noticed that our Princess Tomato's uniform and weapon _haven't changed_. If that design alteration has been ineffective, there's no reason to think the spell will work this time either.

" _Ajarakamokuren, kyuraisu!"_ , Tomato shouts. And fails.

Just as planned.

They start arguing again. Glasses Girl blames herself, Tomato blames her Creator, Mr. Matsubara gets angry… You don't see a scene like this every day. Once I take over the multiverse, perhaps I should hire them as my imperial court buffoons.

" _I see. The fact that Selesia's personality was constructed with enough depth that she's able to argue with the author demonstrates that Mr. Matsubara created a highly detailed description of Selesia's worldview. I'm awestruck"_ , I comment.

Both Princess Tomato and Mr. Matsubara give me weird looks.

" _What a complicated compliment"_ , she says.

" _Am I supposed to be happy about someone admiring me for arguing?"_ , he asks.

Actually, it wasn't a compliment. It was an irony so big it hurts. As anyone who has researched a bit about the Internet knows, you don't need depth of character, a complex world view or high intelligence to argue. It can literally be done by robots or a monkey with a keyboard.

In any case, what started terribly has become a success. It's too easy to make them think that the failure is due to some mysterious "factor" that we don't know yet.

Souta opens his mouth. Oh, shit, is he going to remind everyone of his theory? I must shut his mouth before he…

" _It might be the impression"_ , he says. What? What impression? _"Mirokuji was talking about it today. He said he thinks the reason he appeared in this world is because he left a lasting impression on many people. Isn't revising the story the same? It has to leave an impression on the readers and the fans in order to be accepted"._

Nice distraction! Phew, for a moment I thought you were going to say something intelligent. Yeah, the popularity power theory of Mirokuji Yuuya would explain a lot of things… but it still wouldn't explain why this Princess Tomato can't remember events from the books. You know, we're talking about a published piece of writing here. It has had enough time to cause an impression.

Or is Souta suggesting that the last novel was so bad that fans decided to ignore it and pretend it never existed? Mm, certainly a possibility given Mr. Matsubara's writing skills…

Glasses Girl still feels down. She seems desperate to be of use, after all her work proved a waste of time.

" _If there's anything I can do, I'll cooperate with you again"_ , she says. Good, another potential minion. Then, something seems to come to mind and she gives us a cat smile. _"That's it!"_

She takes a card from her bag with the name "Akiko Yoshioka" and a big logo with the brand of Titan Digitalsoft. The publisher of AVALKEN. The publisher of the game where I came from.

The Creators of my world.

" _A little while ago, I got a job from them to draw something. It was for doing the character design for a sub character"_ , Ms. Marine explains. _"Meteora, you can meet your creator. I'll tell them that my relative wants a tour"_.

Wow, this is… I'm overwhelmed. I didn't think I'd get them so soon. And who is my creator? The producer? The writer? I need to know before I make any mistakes!

The others congratulate me. I still don't know how to react.

" _Good things happen too, see?"_ , Glasses Girl insists. She probably thought I was disappointed and sad because of the failure of the experiment.

I smile.

" _Good things happen too"_ , I accept.

Tonight, Princess Tomato and I will sleep at Marine's place. She has kindly offered her house, and it already sounds like a better deal than Souta's meager room. Tomorrow, I will go with her to Titan Digitalsoft. I'm one step closer to my dream of total multiversal conquest.

Fear me, Military Uniform Princess! Meteora Österreich is back with a vengeance!

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

I should put the disclaimer that this Meteora's opinions (about the plot, the characters, the merits of each medium) are not mine. Nevertheless, I must admit that I do believe that Souta's idea about this Selesia being from the anime instead of the light novels sounds more plausible than canon Meteora's "information amount" theory. I felt disappointed that the series didn't explore that idea, and that the supposedly logical and experiment-loving Meteora didn't even care to mention or entertain it among her many, many deliberations and hypothesis. I think this was the moment when I started the joke that Meteora was secretly manipulating everyone: her theories were all a smokescreen to mislead the heroes! XD

(However, it doesn't mean that I believe Souta's theory to be the correct one or that Meteora's isn't jumping to conclusions here, mind you)

Also,I'm not kidding about Yuuya being good at exposition. Although Meteora is (in)famous as Re:Creator's Ms. Exposition, Yuuya actually did more in episode 3 than her.

Thank you all for your reviews! See you in the next update!


	5. Operation Scapegoat

**Chapter 5:** Operation Scapegoat

 **Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 4: OPERATION SCAPEGOAT**

No. This can't be. This is impossible. These people must be joking. Yes, that's it. A joke.

...

It's not a joke. The producer of AVALKEN, the game planner, the creative mind behind the game, is dead. A traffic accident, they say.

My Creator is no more.

This is a disaster. I have come with Marine to the headquarters of Titan Digitalsoft in order to convince them I'm the real deal and start my own rewriting experiment. Nothing too grand at first, just some new spells, infinite mana, invulnerability, that kind of thing. Omniscience, omnipotence and dominion over the multiverse will come once I'm sure the revision works.

But now? My dreams are shattered. I want to cry.

Why did you have to die, you useless Creator? A motorcycle crash! Honestly, humans here are such fragile creatures. In my world, even the squishiest level one wizard could withstand a couple of axe blows and several wolf bites. At my level, I could be thrown against a building and I would get up with just some minor bruises.

Agh! I'm so upset. People around me are talking, but I don't hear anything. Marine looks at me with worried eyes, but I can only see the lost opportunities crumbling in the distance.

Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry, don't cry…

I'm the great Meteora Österreich. The Sage of the End of the World. The Seeker of a Thousand Miles. Surely I can't be just a minor NPC. My Creator must have left a secret ending or a hidden route that reveals my true power and station. Yes, yes, that's it. I will dissect the game until I find the truth of my character. And then I'll make use of it to take over the world.

Marine is still worried about me. She probably blames herself for my disappointment. I'm certainly not in a good mood, but I can use her guilt to ask for what I need.

I must go back to AVALKEN. This time, however, I'll be the hero.

00000

Damn, this Meteora is such a boring and pointless character! She can't possibly be me!

I've been playing AVALKEN for hours and I'm willing to keep playing until my eyes bleed. Or until the managers of this Internet café kick me out, although they don't seem to be in a hurry. Advantages of using Marine's card to pay for everything. Well, I suppose it's her card: the actual name on it says "Ayano Koura". Either Marine is just a pen name or she stole it from another person. Not that I mind.

What I do mind is how lacking this game of mine is. The characters are one-dimensional clichés, the hero is an annoying brat and the worldbuilding is terribly uninspired. And don't let me talk about the combat system! Now I understand why people, monsters and even animals took turns to attack instead of, you know, fighting dirty.

But what hurts me most is seeing myself in this game. Seriously, this is it? This is what people think of when they hear the name "Meteora Österreich"? A vulgar NPC, a quest giver who talks and talks forever before she kickstarts the last part of the game? A walking plot device?

Excuse me, I need to puke for a moment.

I didn't want to believe that this was the true extent of my character description, but I have to face reality. The game producer didn't hide any secret messages, nor did he promise a sequel with me as the main hero (or the main villain). And with my Creator dead, there is no chance to continue the story and rewrite my character… or is there?

After beating the game, I find something important. No, not a secret ending, but something far more important: the end credits.

My eyes jump from name to name. There's the main producer, of course, but also several directors, artists, writers, designers, composers, programmers, supervisors, a legion of assistants… A huge game like AVALKEN can't be the work of a single creative mind. To pretend otherwise is an exercise of supreme egomania. And now that I think about it, it's not as if all those people are needed either. At the end of the day, AVALKEN's plot, characters and brand belong to a company. If Titan Digitalsoft wants to betray the game planner's creative vision for a quick cash grab and sell sequels like hot cakes, they can do it.

Thank you, laws of intellectual property that allow soulless corporations to hoard the work of real people for all eternity. Thanks to you, my dream can go on. What a relief.

That said, forcing a whole company to make a new game for me won't be as easy as manipulating a single author. I need more time. Sadly, I don't think the Military Uniform Princess will wait. The other day, Magical Slowpoke Mamika almost killed Princess Tomato. And she was alone. What will happen next time? What kind of secret weapon will the twin-tailed brat unleash upon us?

Priorities, Meteora. Planning for my future multiversal conquest will be for naught if I don't take care of the Military Uniform Princess first. Our last fight didn't end too well and my minions may be disheartened, but I know exactly what to do to redouble our efforts.

Let 'Operation Scapegoat' commence!

00000

" _I made you worry. I'm sorry"_ , I say.

I'm back at Mr. Matsubara's house. All my minions are gathered here: the degenerate writer himself, Marine, Souta and Princess Tomato. A meager army, but Demon Lords have started with less. I need them focused and motivated.

I will play the role of quest giver again.

" _There's one more thing I want to apologize about"_ , I continue. _"There's something I haven't told you. It's something extremely important. I want you to listen"_.

I make up a story about how confused I was about my role in the real world, how worried I was that my author might have created my world just for laughs, and how that explains my, ahem, anti-social behavior when I met Princess Tomato. Thankfully, no one points out that I tried to blow up Tomato and the Military Uniform Princess first and ask questions later, which is a more serious offense than not being talkative enough. Gods bless their goldfish memory.

Time to drop the bomb.

" _I don't care if my Creator was an irresponsible or a bad person. However, if my Creator was someone who wasn't sincere about his own world, if someone like that was creating my world, it would descend into an empty world of slaughter and fleeting hope. If it were true… If it were true, I was planning to just observe the destruction of this world as a foreigner who washed up on its shores, a castaway"_.

Insert dramatic pause here.

" _The destruction of this world?"_ , Marine repeats, dumbfounded.

" _What are you talking about?"_ , Princess Tomato's writer asks. _"I've never heard that!"_

Of course you haven't heard of this before, Mr. Matsubara. I'm making it up at this very moment. Still, such an extreme statement deserves some technobabble to justify it.

" _This world contains forces that try to make things make sense in order to maintain order"_ , I explain. _"Selesia and I have probably been "translated" so that we fit in this world. Instead of being two-dimensional forms, polygons or pixels, we appear just like you. This is due to the ability to make things make sense, or in other words, due to restoration power. However, I do not think this world is elastic enough that hundreds of "story worlds" filled with contradictions can be merged with this world without negative effects"_.

" _I don't understand what you're saying"_ , Souta admits.

Honestly, I don't know what I'm saying either. Ability to make things make sense? Restoration of power? Elasticity? If this were a medieval world like mine, I'd just say that "the gods did it" and it would actually be more believable. I mean, to know our real situation and how we impact the world I'd need an alchemy lab and enough time to perform experiments. Of course, I can guess, but guessing is not evidence.

Oh, well, if they end up asking how I know all of this, I'll tell them that my Magic Book says so.

" _Furthermore, as you have seen, we have kept abilities that interfere with the laws of physics and that don't exist in this world. The world couldn't make things make sense fast enough. Or the collision of worlds affected the world in a way we can't imagine"_.

Actually, the world seemed just fine, it's just that Magical Slowpoke Mamika was blowing things up, but we can do that with or without magic.

" _The coefficient of elasticity will eventually reach its limit and the equilibrium mechanics governing the laws of this world will be damaged"_ , I continue. _"If that happens, I think that eventually everything will be "reset" some day, including this world, the foundation for creating other worlds. That is what I think"_.

" _Reset?"_

" _I refer to it as the Great Destruction"_.

Definitely, my naming skills are getting better and better. How would you call a made-up phenomenon that threatens to destroy the whole universe? The Great Destruction!

I'm brilliant.

However, it seems that my persuasion skills need some polishing, because Mr. Matsubara's suspension of disbelief is reaching its limit. Ironically, his "daughter" is the exact opposite.

" _I had a feeling it was something like this"_ , Princess Tomato says, looking serious. _"I understand what it was about now"_.

So she believes me. In fact, no one raises any objections afterwards. If I knew it was going to be so easy, I would have done this sooner. In fact, it seems their curiosity is limited to what I did yesterday. Ok, this gives me a chance to move the conversation forward before anyone notices the logical holes in my hypothesis.

I explain that I stayed up all night playing AVALKEN of Reminisce until the end.

" _It was amusing to watch a caricature of myself I didn't know about"_ , I say. It's true, if by 'amusing' you mean 'grating' and 'I want to take my eyes out after seeing this'.

For Operation Scapegoat to succeed, it's important that I appear as the dutiful daughter that respects her Creator and his values, so I go on to praise the qualities of the game and claim that the producer created my world with a lot of detail and care. Fortunately, and contrary to Princess Tomato, I won't have to put up with him in real life. Never speak ill of the dead and all that.

Of course, the fact that a mere producer can't be the sole creator of my world will never come up.

" _The things that my Creator bestowed to me… I mean, bestowed to my world, are things I can believe in. Even if it's entertainment, that doesn't change what he gave to us. I'm sure he loved my world. And everyone who enjoyed my world from outside loved my world too"_.

Well, "everyone" is a very strong word. I'm not so sure that the critics who wrote those bad reviews that I saw in Rotten Tomatoes would agree.

" _I want to protect what he loved. Even if this situation is under the influence of that woman, or something else. My conclusion is that I want to prevent the world from colliding and return everything back to where it should be. Just like how I tried to save the collapsing world in AVALKEN"_.

So many lies. I have to keep a straight face, lest I burst out laughing.

But it works. They are moved by my words. My unwitting pawns will never think of doubting the sincerity of my resolve, nor they will suspect what my real goal is.

This would have been an epic moment if my stomach hadn't started rumbling.

" _Excuse me, I played for so long I forgot to sleep and eat. It's a little early, but I want to request dinner"_ , I inform my minions.

Mr. Matsubara takes his phone out.

" _Is pizza ok?"_

Pizza, huh. Not a bad choice… for starters.

00000

There is pizza, indeed. And sushi, onigiri, sandwiches, ice cream, lemonade, beer, coffee… A feast worthy of me. For some reason, Marine also insists I play a game with Tomato. Something about eating together some chocolate-coated biscuit sticks.

Now, time to implement phase 2 of Operation Scapegoat. As if staged, Souta gives me the cue I need to start:

" _So that 'Great Destruction' is the goal of the Military Uniform Princess?"_

I nod while still eating.

" _If I… If I had to guess the reason for her actions, then that's the optimal answer"_.

"Optimal" my ass. Even if we overlooked the fact that I have zero evidence of my made-up Great Destruction theory, there would be no reason to believe she wants that. As far as her words and actions imply, she could be 100% honest about her desire to bring revolution to the land of the gods and any negative effects on the fabric of reality could be just an unexpected byproduct of it.

However, if you want to stop a revolutionary that promises to punish the powerful and bring happy endings to everyone, the first step is to make them look like crazy loonies who will destroy everything that is sacred and pure in the world. Classic counter-revolutionary strategy.

And they'll fall for it.

Nevertheless, not all of them have lost their neurons. Mr. Matsubara points out a glaring fault in that explanation:

" _If she does that, wouldn't she disappear with everything else? Isn't that a conflict of motivations?"_

A very good question. Ironically, at this point they are taking my hypothesis as Word of Goddess-Empress, so instead of looking for holes in my theory, they start looking for ways to turn the twin-tailed brat into our collective scapegoat. Hence the name of "Operation Scapegoat".

I said my naming skills had improved, didn't I?

" _What if that woman didn't care if that happened?"_ , Marine suggests. _"If she didn't feel any attachment to this world or herself… In other words, if she's the kind of person who doesn't care if she dies or not"_.

" _Like killing someone and then killing herself"_ , Mr. Matsubara mutters.

Brilliant! Good job, Marine. I've heard that suicide terrorists are all the rage in this world, so it won't be difficult to paint the Military Uniform Princess as one of those.

" _For better or worse, characters in stories are often exaggerations"_ , I say to endorse Marine's point. _"It also applies to Selesia and I"_.

Mr. Matsubara laughs.

" _Well, it would be boring if I wrote you to be normal"_.

" _Sorry for not being normal"_ , Princess Tomato pouts.

Sigh. Like father and child. I should continue.

" _But I think that if her character description said that she was someone who didn't think straight she wouldn't have proposed such a complicated plan to me. Her manner, attitude and words had a very unusual sense of sincerity. It is clear she intends to destroy the world, but I cannot guess her motivations"_.

As convenient as it is to make them think she's a potential suicide bomber, I can't keep making stories up forever. Operation Scapegoat has been a resounding success. However, if I go on to invent a whole motivation for her, it's going to sound less and less believable.

Let's stop the guessing here. It's time to plan our counter-attack.

" _That's enough about the true intentions of the Military Uniform Princess. There's something I want to ask you to do"_ , I tell my minions.

Selesia is not the overpowered hero from my game, but for now she's our main source of brute force and, at worst, she will do as a meat shield. As for the humans of the land of gods, they are perfect to move around and look for clues and other Creations. Because, honest revolutionary or crazy omnicidal maniac, I'm pretty sure the twin-tailed brat will summon more pawns.

We have to get to them first.

" _But how?"_ , Princess Tomato asks. _"Unless that woman is making it happen, I don't understand how people get transported to this world"_.

" _If they're near, we can find the Creations by sensing their unique aura and presence. But for now, we have no choice but to wait"_ , I admit.

Nevertheless, with all this talk about Creators and Creations, I have noticed that our enemy has a vulnerability. Something we can exploit if we're lucky.

" _The one thing connecting all of us is the Military Uniform Princess. And she is a Creation too. She's not from this world. Then, in that case..._ "

I crush a biscuit with my fingers.

 _"...the person that created her exists in this world somewhere"_.

Perhaps the Military Uniform Princess can summon a whole army of fictional characters. Perhaps she can turn us back into pixels if we prove to be a nuisance. But if we find her Creator, we may turn the tables on her and rewrite her out of existence. Or perhaps I should turn her into a willing minion. Gods know I need a capable commander.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. First, let's find out who she is and who created her. Then, grab the author. Because, as I said, he or she must be somewhere. I mean, it would be too much of a coincidence that her Creator is dead too, right?

Right?

00000

It's late, but Mr. Matsubara says something about a call from a friend of his. A new Creation has appeared! This is excellent news. He also says something about a 'mecha'. He seems very excited about that.

I don't know what a 'mecha' is, but I hope it's edible. I'm still hungry.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

Thank you all for your reviews. For this episode I had a little help from Lord Nayreal, so kudos to him too!

To be honest, as much as I like Re:Creators, I consider episode 4 one of the weakest and I'm not precisely a fan of the way Meteora's Great Destruction theory was presented. But hey, if she was an evil mastermind manipulating everyone and trying to make the MUP look bad, it all makes a lot more sense XD

For those who may ask, this Meteora's opinions are her own, and she's not supposed to be an agreeable person. Bear in mind that she's an all-knowing snooty scholar from an ancient library. I imagine her as the kind of stuffy person who would say _"Light Novels are not real literature! Stop reading that trash!"_. If she has a slightly better impression of JRPGs, it's only because she comes from one and needs to feel superior.


	6. The Power Of The State

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 5: THE POWER OF THE STATE**

Surprisingly enough, a 'mecha' is not some kind of delicious food. Instead, it's a giant robot with enough weapons to level a small city.

I want one of those.

Its pilot, however, is less impressive. Kanoya Rui is a skinny blue-haired kid that looks confused and uneasy. It's understandable, though. Apart from his Creator, whose house he almost destroyed after being sent here by the Military Uniform Princess, he has to face now Mr. Matsubara, Marine, Souta and Princess Tomato. And me, of course. We rushed here when we heard the news.

On the other hand, Nakanogane Masaaki, the scenario writer of his anime, warns us that the boy gets defensive easily. I'll take that into account.

" _Um… Where are we?"_ , Kanoya asks. _"This place looks different from the Japan I'm from. Is this the past?"_

" _In the plot, you're from the 22_ _nd_ _century, so yeah, this would be the past"_ , his author tries to explain.

I refrain myself from facepalming. I will have to carry out the proper explanations myself. Again.

" _No"_ , I interrupt the chubby man's faulty exposition. _"The history of his world and the history of this world are not connected. Those worlds are independent. The passage of time does not exist"_.

" _What do you mean?"_ , Kanoya asks. _"I don't understand!"_

Well, it's confirmed: you don't need to be a genius to pilot that Gigas Machina of his. But, hey, it's not as if I was looking for intelligent minions. Obedient ones are enough.

" _It's ok even if you don't understand"_ , I tell him bluntly. _"You were transported here from a world created by the imagination of this world. I and Selesia here are the same"_.

I turn to his Creator.

" _Mr. Nakanogane, where did you meet him?"_

Both author and Creation describe the situation. Something about Kanoya fighting some enemies and Nakanogane watching it on TV, until a "strange girl" appeared and chaos ensued. Of course, it's the Military Uniform Princess. Who else could be? Which means she may be coming here sooner or later to try to recruit Kanoya and his machine for her revolutionary army.

Unfortunately for her, I came first. And now I have taught my minions how to oppose her. With alternative facts!

 _"What do you mean? Is anything else going to happen?"_ , Nakanogane asks.

 _"Not just anything. The survival of the world is at stake"_ , Mr. Matsubara answers dramatically.

His colleague laughs.

 _"Matsubara, there you go again, making up such cliched plots..."_

Hey! I spent at least half an hour thinking about it! Don't compare it with those cheesy plots from Matsubara's light novels.

 _"She's trying to destroy all the worlds. Not just this world, but all the story worlds created by this world"_ , Princess Tomato insists. _"Meteora thinks there's a chance that anyone who tries to resist will be destroyed"_.

I nod. Truly, the power of big lies is marvelous. According to my Magic Book, there was a guy from a country called Austria (Österreich, like my surname, what an auspicious coincidence!) that said that people fall more easily for the big lie than for the small lie, since "it would never come into their heads to fabricate colossal untruths, and they would not believe that others could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously". And even if actual evidence against it was presented to them, "they will still doubt and waver and will continue to think that there may be some other explanation".

I need to read that guy's book one of these days.

Unfortunately, it's at this time when Kanoya Rui decides to get defensive.

 _"Knock it off!"_ , he shouts and stands up. _"I have no idea what you guys are talking about! My entire life… I've been forced to fight in fierce battles! Why do I have to spend my whole life doing that here too? I'm sick of it!"_

His Creator sighs.

 _"Oh, there he goes again"_.

 _"He's just like his character description"_ , Mr. Matsubara points out.

 _"I thought it would be more interesting if the story took a plot twist when he got defensive"_.

Really? Do people enjoy watching characters who throw childish tantrums every time things don't go their way? And what kind of organization would give a kid like that a weapon of mass destruction? Next time you will tell me that they pick the first random civilian who falls into the cockpit or that it's enough for a pilot to be the commander's son to get the job instead of passing a proper test. Geez.

Meanwhile, Kanoya's tantrum goes on. He refuses to cooperate. I don't know if he's being intelligently selfish or stupidly suicidal.

 _"I've had enough of this nonsense! I've always had to put up with a lot of stuff for my whole life! I've never even been on a date with Yuina!"_

 _"Who's Yuina?"_ , Mr. Matsubara asks.

 _"She's the heroine"_ , Nakanogane answers.

Before I have the chance to open my mouth, Princess Tomato has an idea.

 _"Oh, dear. Hey, I might not be Yuina, but if you listen to what I have to say, I'll go on a date with you"_.

Mm, not a bad strategy. I know I entertained the idea of having her seduce Souta if he proved too resistant to our pressure, but this is even better. The whiny kid does have some interest in the opposite sex, after all.

Sadly, after a pause, Kanoya Rui says:

 _"I like girls who are younger than me"_.

A lolicon. They made him a lolicon. These Japanese writers are a bunch of degenerates.

00000

We are at an impasse. Kanoya has barricaded himself in one room and my minions can't help but wonder what we can do about it. Since they lack ideas, all of them look at me.

 _"Don't ask me"_ , I tell them. What? Did they think I would volunteer myself to seduce that pervert? Not for all the gold in the world.

The mood is somber. The Military Uniform Princess or one of her agents could be here at any time. Should I lighten the mood? I've been learning how to tell real jokes after that fiasco with Souta and Princess Tomato. Perhaps I could put my humor skills to good use.

 _"Kanoya has shut himself in"_ , I say. _"There's no way I can know, yah?"_

Come on, thumbs up! Not even a smile? Is this kind of comedy too high-level for them? It's not so difficult to understand: "Kanoya" sounds like "can know, yah". Get it? Get it? No, they don't get it.

And now my medallion is shining. Enemies. Great, as if we didn't have enough problems.

The lights go out.

 _"Meteora!"_ , Tomato shouts.

A light grenade, followed by soldiers breaking windows and the door. At first, I fear they can be more fictional characters from the twin-tailed brat's little army, but these guys look familiar. Very, very familiar. You know, like the JSDF people I stole all those weapons from.

Oh, oh.

 _"Is it her?"_ , Souta asks. Obviously, he's thinking of the Military Uniform Princess.

 _"No!"_ , I answer while I keep pummeling soldiers with my magic like the noobs they are. No time to explain my minions that I might have made an enemy of the Japanese armed forces.

I tell Selesia not to kill them, just in case we can negotiate later. Prisoners can be good bargaining chips. Unfortunately, they have the same idea, because they are taking the Creators in our side one by one. Things get even crazier when Kanoya, not so stupidly suicidal after all, activates his Gigas Machina to show those puny self-defense forces who has the largest weapon. The giant robot even manages to lift the entire house with us inside. However, the JSDF answers with helicopters. We can't seem to catch a break.

Things are getting out of hand. Fighting the Military Uniform Princess is difficult enough without the government interfering.

Perhaps it's a good chance to negotiate.

" _Silence!"_ , I order everyone. Now it isn't the time to appear proper and bookish. To take the lead of the situation, I have to be myself. _"We won't resist! Lower your weapons! Kanoya! Shut off the Gigas Machina auto drive!"_

The kid looks unsure.

 _"But..."_

 _"SHUT IT OFF!"_ , I bark at him.

He sighs, but obeys. Good. He may become a decent minion after all.

Meanwhile, the enemy commander takes off his goggles and orders his men to lower their weapons. A reasonable man, then.

 _"I apologize for the rude greeting"_ , he says. _"I am Major Magaki from the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, Central Readiness Force, Special Forces Group"_.

 _"What is the reason for this warm welcome?"_ , I ask him coldly.

Please, don't say "weapon theft"; please, don't say "weapon theft"; please, don't say "weapon theft"…

 _"We are operating under a special disaster discovery order from the Cabinet. We request that you accompany us to the Special Countermeasures Council where this situation will be discussed"_.

Oh. So it's more of a governmental thing. Phew. For a moment, I was worried my crimes would come to light. I mustn't lose face in front of my minions. What if they start doubting my honesty? I can't let that happen.

 _"I will agree only under the condition that all of us will go together"_ , I tell him. _"I will not allow anyone here to be interrogated separately"_.

It's essential that we all stick to the same story if the authorities start asking questions. Also, if negotiations take a turn for the worse, I want my bodyguards close and my human shields closer.

 _"I do not have the authority to approve your request. However, I shall notify my superiors"_ , he informs me. _"Master Sergeant Hishikawa! Take them. Notify Deputy Chief of Countermeasures Makino"_.

Grrr. I don't like this. But I'll bear with it… for the time being.

00000

The silence is uncomfortable, to put it lightly. Finally, we weren't separated and now we face some sort of civilian council. The vast majority are old men that look unsure, afraid or constipated. There is only one woman. Gender equality doesn't seem a big priority in the government.

Interestingly, it's the woman who takes the lead.

 _"I'm the General Coordination Officer of the Special Situations Countermeasures Council, Kikuchihara"_.

She starts with the presentations. Or better said, she starts telling those supposedly important officials who the Creators on our side are. Souta is Souta and Nakanogane is Nakanogane, but it appears that Mr. Matsubara's real surname is Ohsawa (who cares) and, as I suspected, 'Marine' is just a pen name. That Internet café card wasn't stolen after all.

 _"You should have sent a private driver with your business card to greet us instead of guns"_ , I complain.

To be treated like a wanted criminal is an indignity. Whether I am a criminal or not is a secondary matter.

 _"I apologize"_ , she answers. Doesn't bow, though. Not very sincere. _"To be honest, we have no idea where to start in order to deal with this abnormal situation"_.

She starts talking. A lot. A barrage of exposition with slides. Slides! Who needs those when you have words?

Kikuchihara explains how the appearance of Kanoya's giant robot forced their hand. How they just wanted our cooperation in what they have called "Special Disaster Case 105" (what a stupid name, even I could have come up with something better, like… like… something better, yes). How it began on August 23 and how a certain twin-tailed flying object has been sighted since then. And how on November 18 someone recorded two fictional characters fighting. One of them was Yuuya, the handsome punk that helped us against Mamika.

 _"The other one..."_ , I mutter angrily.

 _"The old guy who sided with the enemy"_ , Mr. Matsubara points out. He also remembers what Yuuya told us back then.

True enough, it doesn't come as a complete surprise, but from the images it's evident that the old man is no pushover. He has a gun and a beard. And he can fly. Not a bad minion for the Military Uniform Princess.

More problems. Two days later, some author called Takarada was kidnapped by his Creation, the armored blonde thug that rescued Mamika. Which means that now the Military Uniform Princess has a Creator in her clutches. Who knows what she could do with him? Unless she meets with the same kind of failure as our little experiment, it's possible that next time we'll have to face an overpowered knight.

On the bright side, if they have reached this point in the chronology of the Special Disaster Case, it must mean that they didn't spot me stealing the JSDF equipment. My secret is safe. Mwahahaha!

 _"The reason we decided to exercise emergency measures is that there was another incident, in addition to the Ogikubo Police Station attack"_ , Kikuchihara continues. _"On November 10, supplies that were issued by the Self-Defense Force were stolen from Camp Jujo"_.

Oh, shit.

The image in the slide is enlarged. The culprit is perfectly clear for everyone to see.

 _"It's Meteora"_ , Souta mumbles. Thank you, Captain Obvious.

I feel Princess Tomato's stare of disappointment. But I'm not making eye contact.

 _"The objects that were stolen include: 6 ATM5 anti-tank missiles, 1 MINMI multipurpose machine gun and 1 cartridge, MK26 hand grenades. All 6 of the ATM5 missiles were used on November 17 at Yoyogi Park during the fight. Correct?"_

Everyone is looking at me now. My minions, the Creators and the government officials. Keep it cool, Meteora. You can get away with this.

 _"I needed to show her that I was willing to use force. However, I am not well versed in attack related magic. Therefore, I decided to borrow a few things"_ , I justify myself.

Military posturing is a common diplomatic tool in this world too. And we all know that, had I managed to kill her with those missiles, now I'd be considered a hero and the solution to this "Special Disaster Case". Cut me some slack.

 _"1 ATM5 missile costs 26 million yen. The cost is completely funded by taxpayer money. 6 missiles total 165 million yen"_ , Kikuchihara replies.

Come on! I'm sure you waste the taxpayer money in more useless things. Like the salaries of all these officials that haven't said a word in all this time.

 _"I request that this incident be pardoned as an emergency evacuation"_ , I say.

 _"Furthermore, the stadium and park facilities that you destroyed are classified as Damage Property under the Penal Code and according to the Civil Code, are subject to a Compensation for Damages Claim..."_

I keep smiling, but I'm screaming inside. Really? Are you seriously implying that you'll make me pay for all of that? Should I remember her that I still have the machine gun and the hand grenades, and that I could turn this stupid kangaroo court into mincemeat I so I wished?

No, no, control yourself, Meteora. It's true that their pathetic soldiers couldn't even scratch the Gigas Machina, so declaring war on all of Japan (and winning) is not out of the question. Still, there's the problem of the twin-tailed brat's growing army. Having the government on my side is a boon. They aren't threatening me with legal action. They just want me to bow, to humble myself. These high and mighty officials know that they are worms in the presence of supermen, and want to feel superior, to delude themselves into thinking they are the masters of the situation.

Fools.

 _"I'm sorry for using them without permission. I apologize"_ , I say.

This is so humiliating. No overlord should be forced to lose face in front of her own minions. Still, it has the desired effect: the Kikuchihara bitch relents.

 _"Yes. I wish you would have said that first"_ , she says. _"I wasn't trying to be mean. In consideration of the security of our citizens and the protection of information, please refrain from doing things like this"._

Look at her, acting smug and patronizing like a teacher that has caught her student cheating in an exercise. I swear that, once I take over the world, I'll make her pay for this ignominy.

In the meantime, however, I'll play along and become the perfect teacher's pet.

 _"If you grant me voluntary discretion, I promise to notify you in emergencies"_ , I offer.

They are more agreeable now, and they are quick to guarantee our human rights. And when the matter of the Military Uniform Princess is addressed, I finally find the chance to turn the tables.

 _"It's still just a hypothesis, but we think she has a grand plan for this world"_ , I announce.

Kikuchihara frowns.

 _"I've never heard that before. Can you explain more?"_

I must keep myself from smiling. Do you think your exposition skills are good, you government lapdog? Wait until you see mine!

Fade to black.

00000

Mwahahahaha! Look at that, no slides, yet now everyone is dancing to my tune. The few who still have a functional brain suggest summoning a council of experts. Japan is a highly advanced country and scientists exist to check this kind of claims. But I'm quick to shoot that option down.

 _"The moment a crack appears that is obvious to everyone… That is the moment when it has already become too late"_.

So dramatic. And so convenient. No self-respecting scholar would accept such an egregious argument. Fortunately for me, these are not scholars, but useless bureaucrats.

As for why the Military Uniform Princess hasn't done any world destruction despite supposedly being here for months, I argue that the world's "restoration power" might throw her out if she only damages it halfway. Seriously, no one is even going to ask how I know that the world has such an amazing ability? Oh, well, better for me.

Finally, an official other than Kikuchihara opens his mouth.

 _"What is your opinion regarding the best course of action?"_ , he asks me.

This is too easy. Convincing them that taking the Creators into custody and hunting the Military Uniform Princess should be our top priority is child's play. Of course, it's a 180º turn from when I convinced my minions that we should keep a low profile in order to protect the universe… but I find a justification for changing the goalposts: now that the Creations have increased, we should go after them to suppress secondary damage.

Again, no one points out the insane troll logic behind that argument. When we were but a few, mere interaction could put the fabric of reality in peril, but now that we are more, open fights are suddenly okay? Geez, the school system of this country needs a huge revamp.

 _"And in order to stop people from panicking when a confrontation occurs, I want you to create a cover-up"_ , I ask them.

 _"That's difficult. Cover-ups aren't as easy as everyone thinks, Meteora"_ , another official answers.

 _"If the cover-up leaks, people will start losing trust in the related organizations. Then the residents wouldn't believe the information we release"_ , a man from the military adds.

Now they worry about transparency. So cute. I guess the prime minister is not doing well in the polls.

A bit more pressure does the trick. In the end, they agree to give us status of residents. Also, we will be appointed as government officials and given the proper documents. So, in the span of a single meeting, we have gone from illegal aliens and suspected criminals to valid citizens and authorities of the state. Who said talking and talking forever was pointless?

 _"Based on the proceedings of today's council, I will draft a proposal to submit to the Cabinet"_ , Kikuchihara announces. _"I request the cooperation of the various ministries in handling the situation. The Creators and the Creations will be granted the protection of this Council as of today"_.

Excellent. Soon, I will face the Military Uniform Princess with all the power of the Japanese government behind me.

You should have killed me when you got the chance, twin-tailed brat.

00000

A moment to relax, at last. Now that we are going to become partners, Kikuchihara is trying a friendlier approach. She even brings me a coffee… in a plastic cup. So cheap. Definitely, not minion material.

 _"Meteora, how do you plan to settle the situation in the end?"_ , she asks me in a serious tone.

I take a moment to think of an answer.

 _"The creativity and will of the people in this world are what created our worlds. In that case, the ultimate solution is also their creativity and will"_.

 _"You mean you need the power of the Creators"_ , Kikuchihara says.

Technically, it's not a lie. The ultimate solution to this crisis can only be my ascension as Goddess-Empress, which will allow me to bring peace and order to all the corners of the multiverse, including this underwhelming mudball. For that, the rewriting process is essential. "Creativity and will", of course, but under my enlightened guidance. Now that I have government contacts, perhaps I should pay another visit to Titan Digitalsoft.

 _"I think that the key to saving this world will turn out to be your imagination rather than us"_ , I tell her.

 _"Save the world?"_ , Kikuchihara repeats. And smiles. Ah, so she has a soft spot after all. _"If someone from this world told me that, I think I would have just laughed. It's a pretty sad story as someone from this world, which created you"_.

Emotional vulnerability detected. Good, good.

 _"That's not true, Ms. Kikuchihara. You're standing here, right now"_ , I reply.

Nothing like appealing to a person's inner hero fantasies. And it works. The ice queen is melting bit by bit. By the time Princess Tomato comes, I'm playing Kikuchihara like a fiddle. The secret to everyone's weakness is stoking their ego, and government lapdogs are no exception.

 _"Kanoya says he wants to eat now. He's making a big fuss"_ , Tomato informs us.

Not that I can blame him. I'm hungry too.

Kikuchihara adjusts her glasses.

 _"I'll arrange for it"_.

Oh, so she will have food brought to us? Perhaps she does have a future as a minion… after proper reeducation in the dungeons, of course.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

This weekend I'm going abroad, so I won't have time to update on time. Thus, I decided to write this chapter before I go and publish it earlier, even if (as I foresaw) it ended up being the longest so far. Episode 5 was very Meteora-centric and exposition-heavy, after all. Enjoy!

-Yes, Meteora is quoting Adolf Hitler here. She's that evil.

-The data from Major Magaki is real. The Ground Self-Defense Force is the land-based branch of the JSDF, and the Special Forces Group are indeed part of the Central Readiness Force.

-In general, Meteora looked positively commanding and demanding in this episode, especially during the JSDF attack, a stark contrast with the demure scholar with poor social skills from previous episodes. And sometimes it looked as if she wanted to stare people to death. More evidence she's an evil overlord in disguise, of course XD


	7. A Wild Psycho Appears

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 6: A WILD PSYCHO APPEARS**

This is not how I wanted to spend the morning.

Putting my best face forward, I've been working with Kikuchihara and her agents to find new Creations. If we can find them before the Military Uniform Princess, we can "convince" them to join our side for the "greater good" of the world.

I expected a tedious scholarly work. You know, using the government's vast scientific resources to look for radio wave interference or abnormal magnetic fields, signs that someone is tampering with the laws of nature to bring fictional characters to this world. In hindsight, I shouldn't have bothered. I still don't know who the newest arrival is, but I can say one thing for sure: he or she likes blood.

The place is a bookstore, or a comic store, or something similar. The floor is covered by broken shelves and a mishmash of papers, and there's blood everywhere. As for the owner of the store, well, let's just say that he's everywhere too.

" _What? What happened?"_

I can hear the whispers of the people outside the police cordon, all worried yet morbidly curious. Evidently, people murdering shopkeepers in gruesome fashion is not an everyday occurrence in this world. If only all the game worlds were so civilized!

While I examine the scene, Kikuchihara gives orders to cover up the incident. It seems that all the government's misgivings about lying to the general public evaporated when they saw the kind of mess they are going to face. So much for principles.

" _Please, report the incident as a robbery-murder to the surrounding residents"_ , she says.

A robbery-murder? What a lack of imagination! Seriously, this attack was vicious. A serial killer would be more believable. Or a horde of deranged fans angered by the cancellation of their favorite series. I've heard fandom in Japan is hardcore.

On the bright side, it seems Kikuchihara got a description of the main suspect.

" _The last person who left the bookstore was a schoolgirl. Her school uniform was black instead of navy. She had black leather gloves and a Shimenawa Shinto rope decoration. According to witnesses, it looked like a costume"_ , she informs me.

My gaze is fixated on the crime scene. Not because I'm in shock, mind you, but because it's a subtle way to ignore Kikuchihara as much as possible. I still can't forget the humilliation she made me suffer the other day. To lower myself to visually acknowledge her existence would be unworthy of me.

Nevertheless, she probably expect me to say something.

" _A villain character. She must be that kind of character"_ , I guess. That, or a very amoral adventurer, who would be a major villain in every other story but her own. _"She's definitely a Creation"_.

A character like her could be useful. My side of righteous vigilantes is easy to manipulate, but at the end of the day I doubt they will be willing to perform some tasks. Especially the unsavory ones. Meanwhile, a psycho for hire could make for a nice shadow operative, a cold-blooded executioner under my command. No ruler can survive without one of those.

On the other hand, a new villain character could easily become what I am to the Military Uniform Princess: a problematic rival with opposing goals. That's bad.

Mm. Should I recruit her? Or should I nuke her on sight? I suppose I won't know the answer until I meet her. With some luck, she'll leave a trail of blood and entrails in her wake. Following her is going to be child's play.

00000

" _Sorry to keep you waiting!"_ , someone shouts when I get out of the store.

Good, Princess Tomato is here. I wanted to assemble a hunting party as soon as I could. But now that I look around, I notice that someone is missing.

" _Where's Kanoya?"_ , I ask Tomato.

I remember telling her to bring the kid and his Gigas Machina here. Now that we have such a wondrous killing machine at our disposal, I want to keep it close as often as I can. Beating enemies through superior firepower is going to be an amazing experience. For me, of course, my enemies may not agree so much.

" _I told him to come with me, but he won't listen to anything I say"_ , Princess Tomato answers.

Sigh, I should have remembered that Kanoya's depraved fetishes make him immune to Tomato's sex appeal. To think that such a kid was the main pilot of a militarized organization! Yet I also remember that in his story he threatened to destroy his own base rather than following orders, so perhaps it's best if I don't pressure him too much… for now.

" _He was forced to fight in battles he didn't want to. I think he must have been very stressed"_ , I say, trying to sound understanding.

Actually, what I think is that he was a whinny emo kid that put the world at risk time and time again because people hurt his feelings. Seriously, child, what did you think the world of adults was like? Grown ups know that life is unfair. More often than not, we have to endure, feign a smile and pretend everything is okay while legions of idiots ruin our work and miserable upstarts take advantage of the situation. The gods know I have wanted to strangle many people throughout my life.

But did I complain? No. That's for losers. The winners make a list and, when they are on top, they make sure that each and every one in that list pays with interests. That's the adult way.

Still, I suppose Knaoya can't know better, for he was literally written to be an immature brat.

" _We have someone keeping guard over him. Let him do whatever he pleases for now"_ , I concede.

Surely, Princess Tomato and I should be enough to take care of that book-loving, murder-happy girl. What could possibly go wrong?

00000

Me and my big mouth. Oh, yes, we've managed to find our target relatively quickly. Non-standard school uniform, purple hair, supernatural golden eyes and shark teeth. Definitely a villain.

But she isn't alone. That blonde knight (Alice-something... ¿Alice In Wonderland? Close enough) and Magical Slowpoke Mamika arrived before us. It seems that they weren't very happy with their potential comrade, because the knight was about to open a brand new hole in that murderer's chest before Princess Tomato intervened.

Good. It means that whoever the new girl is, she won't probably join the twintailed brat's side.

" _Oh, oh, who is it now?"_ , she asks looking at Tomato and me.

" _A Creation, just like you"_ , I answer. Better to hold off from giving more information until I know more about her.

" _A Creation? What an interesting word. I'm interested"_.

" _You killed someone, didn't you?"_ , Selesia asks her with barely contained anger.

" _Why do you ask? Is it any of your business?"_

" _I'll tell you later"_ , Tomato replies. Obviously, she didn't expect our newcomer to be so nonchalant about it.

Honestly, Princess Tomato, she's right. In fact, I'm pretty sure that you have killed far more people than this girl throughout your adventures. If she killed a random NPC, it's unfortunate, but I will graciously pardon her if she puts her skills to good use. And when I say "good use", I mean "helping me take down the Military Uniform Princess and conquer the world", of course.

Meanwhile, Alice In Wonderland starts circling around us. She hasn't given up on her prey. But I'm more worried about Mamika. The Magical Slowpoke could nuke all of us if so she wished, but she seems unsure.

I sense an opportunity here.

" _I have unsettled business with that piece of rubbish. Step aside"_ , the blonde knight orders.

" _No matter who she is, I can't have you raise a commotion. And you are in no position to pass judgment on her"_ , Princess Tomato retorts.

Damn right! Only I can pass judgment on potential minions.

" _She is like poison"_ , Alice In Wonderland insists. _"If we leave her alone, she'll spread death to everyone around her"_.

Ugh, we're not getting anywhere. Perhaps I should tell them what…

" _Wait!"_

Oh, my. Magical Slowpoke Mamika finally decided to join the conversation. I'm curious. What will she say? And how can I use it to make her join me? As I said in the past, she has the potential to become the perfect Dragon, a pink agent of death under my command.

" _I've been thinking about it. About what the Military Uniform Princess said and about what you said. Who should I believe? I couldn't find the answer. But there is one thing I know for sure! We don't need to hurt each other!"_ , Mamika claims.

Evidently, our previous encounter weighs heavily on her mind. She isn't used to fights like the ones Tomato, Alice and I know, and is desperate for someone to tell her that there's another option.

I'm giddy. This is exactly what I was looking for.

" _Just as you say, there's no reason for us to fight"_ , I tell her.

Magical Slowpoke Mamika is ecstatic, but Princess Tomato gives me a surprised look. I can almost hear what she's thinking: "didn't we agree that we should take them down with extreme prejudice for great justice?". Ah, my red-haired minion, by now you should have noticed that the only rule that matters is that of convenience.

" _However, that is precisely what the Military Uniform Princess wants"_ , I continue. Mamika's smile disappears. I don't want to be friends, I want to break her will with doubt and guilt until she yields. _"As long as you are acting according to her machinations, then we must act in order to stop you"_.

" _No..."_

So evil. Make it look as if all the responsibility of the conflict was on her side. Sadly, her blonde bodyguard interrupts me.

" _You must be the Seeker of a Thousand Miles"_ , she says.

I nod. Ah, so they know about me too? They must have researched. Or the Military Uniform Princess told them about me. Surely, she must have noticed that I'm the greatest obstacle in her path to victory. Revolutionaries don't like despots.

" _Are you claiming that the Military Uniform Princess has been deceiving us?"_

" _Changing the world isn't as easy as she says"_ , I reply.

I'm crossing fingers here. If they managed to pull a rewrite off, I'm going to look like an utter fool.

" _Nonsense"_ , Alice In Wonderland retorts. _"This is the home of the gods who created my world. How can that be?"_

Yes! From the tone of her words, I guess they haven't been successful either. She speaks with faith, not with facts. Good, good. Maybe I can make that blonde knight doubt her cause too? My main target is Mamika, then the cold-blooded assassin, but I wouldn't mind having a flying horse too.

" _Ms. Knight, do you think that the gods in this world are all-powerful?"_ , I ask her.

" _Of course. Those who created the world are gods. Miracles happen because of the gods. It is unthinkable that creation would be impossible"_.

" _There is a critical flaw in your understanding"_.

" _What did you say?"_

" _I want you to think about it. Are the people you see in this world really all-powerful? They do have the power to create worlds. However, just like us, they live in a world with various limitations and hardships. They are neither immortal, nor absolute"_.

Nothing like a good strawman to derail a logical argument. True enough, I have not lied about the people from this world. They are inferior beings, a bunch of fleas incapable of greatness. However, that doesn't mean they can't be all-powerful gods from the point of view of the worlds they create, which is exactly the point Alice In Wonderland was making. One thing does not preclude the other, especially if rewriting is possible and we can be changed in this world too.

Unfortunately for me, she isn't misled by my logical fallacy.

" _Silence!"_ , the blonde knight shouts. _"The Military Uniform Princess told me. When the power of the gods is unleashed, it can make miracles come true!"_

She goes on to explain how her world is a hellhole of pain and suffering, and how the discovery that it was just a piece of fiction to entertain the gods broke her hopes. Honestly, I sympathize. My world wasn't a walk in the park either, but if it had been as bad as hers, I would be the first in line to catch my creator and torture him for all eternity. And then I would feed his entrails to a pack of dogs.

Forgive me, Ms. Knight. Your arguments are rationally, logically and emotionally sound. I wish they were mine. However, if I am to turn Mamika to the dark side, I must teach her that her side is in the wrong, that all of you want senseless violence and that it is our righteous duty to crush you before more harm is done.

I need you to explode.

" _I understand your situation, Ms. Knight. However, confusing your desires with reality will lead you down the wrong path. Such desire is a curse"_ , I say in the most dismissive tone I can muster.

Alice In Wonderland clutches her lance. She's barely keeping herself from attacking.

" _Bastard! Your words are false!"_

" _I am telling the truth"_ , I lie.

" _I shall not waste my breath talking to you!"_

Wow, she's insanely strong. With a strike from her lance, she throws a shockwave that devastates everything in front of her. I summon a shield to protect me and Princess Tomato tries to block it with her sword, but then the blonde knight shoots some purple-thingy at us and we end up being thrown against one bridge… and then another bridge… and then the ground.

Agh, ugh… It hurts. A lot. Perhaps I shouldn't have angered Alice In Wonderland after all.

" _Rest for a bit"_ , Princess Tomato tells me.

I'm not as weakened as she thinks. I'm a high level wizard that was clever enough to put enough points in Health. I also have the weapons I borrowed from the JSDF. Nevertheless, observing Tomato and Alice fight could be instructive. If need be, I can attack the blonde knight from behind. Being a combat pragmatist is always the safest bet.

" _My apologies"_ , I mutter, looking sorry.

" _I'm fine. Leave it to me"_.

After exchanging some blows, however, it's painfully obvious that Alice In Wonderland is leagues above Princess Tomato. Seriously, this is disappointing. And it seems I wasn't the only one who thought of taking advantage of the situation, because a gun is fired and only my timely intervention saves Tomato from a severe case of bullet allergy.

The culprit is an old man floating above us. From his looks (glasses, beard, coat, cool gadgets), he must be the one who fought Yuuya in that park and who joined the Military Uniform Princess afterwards.

" _This is the first time we meet. My name is Blitz Talker. Think of me as someone working on the side of those who do not want you to interfere"_ , he presents himself.

And then he starts shooting again.

This is bad. I seriously miscalculated Alice's strength, and now we have to face someone who was able to keep up with Yuuya. And yet, I'm hopeful. Magical Slowpoke Mamika hasn't joined the fray. She's still looking at us, in doubt. If only we could endure this punishment a bit longer…

" _What about your weapon? Like last time"_ , a desperate Princess Tomato suggests.

" _I promised Kikuchihara I wouldn't use it without her permission"_.

By the gods, that must have been my weakest excuse yet. In the past I broke into a military base, stole weapons and then fired them without caring about collateral damage or civilian casualties. And now we're fighting for our lives against people who (allegedly) want to destroy the world. What kind of moron would ask for permission? Thankfully, Tomato buys it.

" _Contact her! I'll hold off Alicetaria!"_

Ah, so the knight's name is Alicetaria, not Alice In Wonderland. Who cares. Still, I suppose I should take out my mobile phone and put on a show, pretending I'm too busy trying to call the government to mount a proper counter-attack. After all, my shield can absorb all those bullet…

Or not. The last bullet has done something strange.

" _A Gravity Bomb"_ , Blitz Talker kindly informs me.

I don't have time to answer. There's a flash, my shield breaks and I'm thrown against the bridge. Again. I would feel sorry for the construction workers that will have to repair this mess if I wasn't so occupied trying not to pass out.

Worst of all, the bastard isn't going to give me time to recover. A combat pragmatist indeed. Gods, I hate it when my enemies have the same ideas as me.

" _Meteora!"_ , I can hear Princess Tomato shouting when Blitz Talker fires again.

This is it? This is how the great Meteora Österreich is going to die? Ignominiously, among the ruble, in a foreign world where worms reign supreme?

No, it is not.

A pink shield appears and protects me. Surrounded by a powerful glow, Magical Slowpoke Mamika flies to stand between me and my attacker.

" _She can't fight anymore! Why do you have to keep going?"_ , she asks the old man.

" _If I stop here, she might attack later!"_ , Blitz answers.

He knows me too well.

Blitz Talker keeps shooting, but Mamika's magic is too strong even for him. She's too good-natured and pure to let me die, even if that means turning against her ally. She proclaims:

" _If I just stand by and watch while this happens, then, when I go back to my own world, I'd feel too ashamed!"_

And thus she faces him, valiant and daring, in defense of a fallen foe that proved to be more reasonable and peace-loving than her supposed friends.

Just according to keikaku.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

Translator's note: 'keikaku' means ' plan'.

With Magane's introduction, we finally have the axis of evil of this story. According to the classic character alignment, the three Big Bad Ladies are:

-Military Uniform Princess: Chaotic Evil, for she wants to bring revolution to the gods and destruction to the world in the name of revenge, even if that means her own demise.

-Chikujoin Magane: Neutral Evil, for she wants to pursue her own sadistic pleasure and turn the world into her personal playground through murder, manipulation and cosplay.

-Meteora Österreich: Lawful Evil, for she wants to become omnipotent and rule over the many worlds, fictional or not, as the Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse.

By the way, episode 11 revealed that Kanoya is such a Shinji Ikari expy that events that happened in Evangelion happened in his series too.

Ironically, from the point of view of this story and with the hindsight of later episodes, Alicetaria February is completely right about the power of the gods, the danger that Magane represents and the falsehoods of Meteora's speech.


	8. Out Of Control

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 7: OUT OF CONTROL**

As satisfactory as it is to witness Magical Slowpoke Mamika turn against her friends, I think I should start moving, just in case. That Blitz won't hesitate to shoot to kill if he has the chance.

Agh, my whole body is in pain. I'd like to say that my injuries were a necessary part of the plan but, frankly, I didn't expect Alice In Wonderland to be so strong. And that Gravity Bullet that Blitz used… _For a moment, I saw a beautiful river and a field of flowers_. That was really bad.

Meanwhile, Princess Tomato is still fighting the blonde knight, though a blind person could see that it's only a matter of time she loses.

" _You're so tiring!"_ , my minion says.

" _Stop complaining!"_

Idiots, both of them. Still, I suppose I should make a plan to rescue Tomato. The battle is not going our way… Or perhaps it is? A cloud of pink hearts creates an explosion between the two dolts and they stop fighting.

" _Alice! That's enough!"_

What a surprise. I thought Magical Slowpoke Mamika would be too busy with Blitz Talker, but it seems the old man left her alone. That or he ran out of bullets. Whatever the case, this is good for us.

" _Don't interfere, Mamika!"_ , the blonde knight barks.

But my potential future pink agent of death won't be deterred, no matter how loud her friend is.

" _Really, if it's like you say, Alice, if we can't talk things through… If we can't find a way to agree with each other, we should just leave each other alone. If you still want to hurt each other, I won't hesitate to use Magical Splash Flare against anyone no matter who it is! Even against someone who is dependable and kind, someone I like. Even against you, Alice. So, please, don't make me do it!"_

YES! Yes! Mwuahahahaha! Mamika just needs a bit of pushing and she will fall into my clutches. I just need her to exchange blows with her best friend in this world. It doesn't matter who wins, as long as their friendship is broken and Mamika has no other choice but to turn to us for help. Nevermind that it was us who were hunting them, or that using violence to solve a problem after criticizing others for doing the same is troll logic at its finest. As I said, I want powerful minions, not bright ones.

This is the perfect scenario. I just need to let things proceed as intended and soon I will have a new…

" _Looks like you're having some fun"_ , a voice from above says.

Who…? By, the gods, it's Yuuya! The punk who helped us against Mamika the first time! What is he doing here?

Yuuya barely acknowledges us. He turns against Blitz Talker.

" _We finally meet, old guy. I left in the middle of things last time. Sorry. I hate being indebted to other people. I can't relax. I can't get anything done. Let me in!"_

I want to facepalm so hard right now. Dammit, Yuuya! Of all the times you could have chosen to settle debts…! He's going to turn my perfectly crafted scenario into a circus.

Yuuya, never the patient type, starts attacking like crazy. He faces Blitz Talker one on one and sends his ghost, Hangaku, to harass Alice In Wonderland. I should feel glad that he doesn't consider Princess Tomato or I enemies, but now the sides are blurred. Mamika is going to think that he's with us and react accordingly.

" _No!"_

As I feared, the pink-haired magical girl soon forgets about Alice's and Tomato's fight and rushes to defend Blitz Talker from Yuuya's vicious attack. Sigh. No way to convince Mamika to change sides at this moment. All my efforts and aches wasted in a matter of seconds.

This is a disaster. I tell Princess Tomato to carry me and get away from the battle. I've lost my chance to recruit Mamika, but we still have that purple-haired psycho around. If we could use her abilities, whatever they are, perhaps we still have an opportunity to change the flow of the battle. If we can convince her, that's it.

The golden-eyed murderer is enjoying the show, at least.

" _Oh, cool! Magic girl, you're pretty strong! Amazing, amazing, just like a movie. You don't get a chance to see this every day!"_ , she says while jumping and clapping.

We land right behind her. I still need a rest, so I'll leave the talking to Princess Tomato.

" _Hurry! Come with us!"_

" _No way"_.

" _Quit messing around!"_

Not the strongest opening in a negotiation, that's for sure. The purple-haired girl smiles mischievously.

" _I'm not messing around. Why do you think I'm supposed to be involved in your fight? Your assumption is wrong"_.

" _I don't want to let a wild beast like you run around loose!"_

Tomato, the spirit is right on the money, but the execution is a failure. If you want to convince a criminal to join our side in exchange of not being pursued by the authorities, there are better ways to word it. Of course, our newcomer interprets it the other way round.

" _Beast?"_ , she repeats and laughs. _"Then I can't let myself get caught, because I can't stand cages and zoos"_.

Princess Tomato threatens to draw her sword.

" _I'll get you by force"_.

" _Are you okay doing something like that? If you ask what I think, letting them cause a big scene like that is a problem, right?"_

" _It's none of your business!"_

" _Yeah"_ , she smiles and shrugs.

Clever and smartass. Sigh, why couldn't the Military Uniform Princess summon another dumb hero of justice? Nevertheless, she's right. We can't afford the luxury of starting a new fight when the previous one is still ongoing. We'll have to go back without reinforcements. What a pain.

Princess Tomato is not happy about it, but she listens to reason and runs to intercept Yuuya. The ill-timed punk has actually the upper hand despite facing Blitz Talker, Alice In Wonderland and Mamika at the same time.

 _"That's far enough. Do you enjoy hurting children?"_ , Tomato berates him.

Well done, my minion. Perhaps the image Mamika has of us (and when I say 'us', I mean 'me') won't be completely ruined after all.

Yuuya is understandably annoyed by the interruption and they start arguing. Ok, that's manageable. There's a deep sound and the huge mass of Gigas Machina lands in the middle of the river, pouring water everywhere. Ok, that's not manageable at all. Seriously, Kanoya? Now you bring your giant robot?

Everybody is running away. The blonde knight summons her flying horse and takes Mamika with her. She gives me a nasty glare while passing by. If looks could kill, I'd be a dead body right now. Of course, if looks could kill, I'd have disintegrated her into subatomic particles, and all her ancestors too.

Bitch.

Oh, well, at least we have that psycho with us. We tried to be nice and it didn't work, so I'm afraid our next recruitment tactic will have to be a bit more aggressive. In fact, I'll start right now… if I can find her, because suddenly I can't spot her anywhere.

" _She's..."_ , I mutter.

Gone. She's gone. That cowardly shark-girl got away while I was busy watching the battle. The gall! Oh, well, in the great scheme of things, she's small fry. What's the worst she can do? Kill another store clerk?

Let's see what we can salvage from this disaster. Yuuya and I need to exchange some words.

00000

" _Yes. Yes. Yeah. I'll keep in custody here"_.

We're back to one of the government's offices and Kikuchihara is talking on the phone. The evening wasn't a total loss. I failed at recruiting Mamika and the purple-haired girl, but Yuuya was an unexpected bonus. Instead of running away, he decided to stay and now he's eating ice cream payed by taxpayer money and watching TV with Kanoya. He doesn't like the word "custody", though.

" _I'm not in kindergarten. I came here on my own will"_ , he points out. _"If I follow you guys, I bet I'll be able to face off with that old guy again"_.

I frown. He's as ridiculously handsome as always, but his sudden appearance destroyed my plans and his loyalties are fickle, to put it lightly. I don't trust him. And he still owes me a date.

 _"Either Selesia and I should keep watch over him"_ , I tell Kikuchiahara. The government's lapdog seems worried and I can't blame her. _"If something happens, you won't be able to handle it"_.

Yuuya pouts.

" _I'm not going to go out of control. Who do you think I am? Just make sure I don't get bored. Right, Metchin?"_

Metchin? Is he talking about me?

" _Hey, Metchin!"_

By the gods, he is. _Shut up, Grasshopper Glasses!_ Who do you think you are, giving a ridiculous nickname to the one and only Meteora Österreich? Seriously, I'm starting to wonder what the hell I saw in this punk.

" _Stop. I don't like cheap nicknames"_ , I tell him. Unless we're talking about the nicknames I create, which are clever, awesome and justified.

Kikuchihara sighs.

" _Let's leave her alone for a while"_ , she suggests. _"Did you find out who the girl in the black uniform is?"_

Princess Tomato takes out her smartphone and shows an image with our mysterious girl in it.

" _I heard from Souta. From the novel Yasoukiroku. He said he's sure it's Chikujoin Magane, the enemy character"_.

Kikuchihara is impressed, which speaks volumes of the sheer incompetence of her department. She's had the police report and the culprit's description for hours, yet my minion Souta only needed a five-minute call from Princess Tomato to accurately pinpoint her identity and, more important, her abilities.

" _What kind of powers does she have?"_ , Kikuchihara asks.

This time, I answer. It was Tomato who made the call, but I'm the exposition master here, thank you very much.

" _Her weapon is her words. By using deception and lies, her power is called "Infinite Deception of Words", the power to bend reality"_.

I wish I could bend reality too. Ah, the advantages of godhood! Soon, soon. In the meantime, I guess this Magane's powers are a bit more tricky than I thought, but nothing we can't handle. I mean, she's basically powerless as long as we stay silent. One has to be very, very dumb to say something they shouldn't after knowing the extent of her abilities, right?

 _"The author's name is Kurakuma Tenkyu"_ , Princess Tomato adds.

 _"I'll arrange for immediate protection"_ , Kikuchihara promises.

Princess Tomato still looks down. Evidently, she's still worried about letting that Magane on the loose. If I were her, I'd be more worried about her record of uselessness in all the fights so far, but I guess I don't have a moral compass as strict as hers. She suggests using the magnetic fields to find her (no, idiot, that only works when a new character appears), but Kikuchihara insists that a normal police investigation will take care of it.

At that point, Kanoya offers an interesting insight:

" _But that girl named Magane doesn't plan to ally with the Military Uniform Princess, right? Then, wouldn't it be okay to just leave her alone?"_

" _That would be fine if all she did was walk around and play, but she would kill people just for the fun of it"_ , Princess Tomato retorts.

Awful, isn't it? Killing people just for fun is such a waste. I can definitely understand the thrill of crushing my enemies underfoot and making them suffer until they beg for the sweet release of death. But that's supposed to be the cherry on top, the final reward in a well-thought plan to take over the realm, not the main dish. Destroying potential human resources without a plan is dumb.

Grasshopper Glasses sees an opportunity to offer his expertise.

" _So you mean to say that hunting down that Magane girl is the next game?"_ , he asks.

" _Did you think of something?"_

He goes back to his ice cream, feigning disinterest.

" _Ah, that's right. I've changed after coming here. Even this guy changed"_ , he says, pointing at Kanoya. _"Let's put it this way, it's not that I changed. Some parts of the character description that had been hidden because of the plot started to reveal themselves because they lost their purpose and constraints. Something like that. So that Magane girl could be changing too. Or she could be searching for a new purpose now. That's what I was thinking"_.

Typical of Yuuya. Just after I discarded him as a brute, he shows why he's more intelligent than the average sheep in this world. Kanoya fawns over him and they bond over giant robots, much to Princess Tomato's chagrin.

" _Give me a break"_ , she mutters and facepalms.

I'd share the gesture, but my brain is working at full speed.

" _Another purpose..."_

Like his words in the diner not so long ago, the theory of Grasshopper Glasses opens a whole new world of possibilities and conundrums. Are we changing? I exist in this world, but I definitely saw another Meteora in the game when I played it. Who is the real Meteora Österreich, then? My dream is to take over the multiverse. But was that goal born from my character design in AVALKEN or from my own choices here?

Questions, questions. And I'm afraid only the Military Uniform Princess has the answers. If only we knew who she really is!

00000

So much for the government's protection. Kurakuma Tenkyu, Magane's creator, is dead. Yay, another crime scene! Just what I wanted to see to end the day!

I'm trying to be sarcastic, by the way.

I better call the other Creators, just in case. If Magane did that to her own author, who knows what she may do to others. Still, why did she do it? After checking Kurakuma's computer, it seems he tried to write new powers for Magane. Flight, turning things into gold, summoning monsters and phantoms… Cute. Either she succeeded and the author outlived his usefulness, or she failed and she decided to get rid of a potential weakness before we could get to him.

I seriously hope it's the latter. If not, we're screwed.

00000

Yesterday was a shitty day. No matter what I wanted to achieve, the universe laughed in my face. But a call this morning has improved my mood big time.

We found her. We know who the Military Uniform Princess is.

Or at least that's what Nakanogane Masaaki, Kanoya's creator, claims. Funny, he seemed a non-descript guy at first, but if he's right, I promise to name a street in his honor once I build my future capital.

We're all sleepy but looking forward to this presentation, even if the poor Nakanogane is going to use slides for it. A noob thing to do, but I'll let it slide. Ha, ha, ha, I'm so funny. Get it? "Slides"? "Let it slide"? I must have been a comedian in my previous life. Now, if only Souta could be here to bring me some coffee. But according to Mr. Matsubara, he should be at school. A pity, but education is important. If he studies hard, he may become my personal Minister of Snacks and Drinks once I take over the world.

Yes, I'm in a good mood today.

" _I checked all the popular anime and video games. I thought if I couldn't find her there, then this is the only place left"_ , Nakanogane explains.

A web page full of bright colors appears on screen. "Niwavideo", huh.

" _What is this?"_ , a bored Kanoya asks.

Marine answers in Nakanogane's place:

" _It's a website for posting videos and illustrations. It's popular among young people. Some of the popular people on this website even become pros"_.

" _I see"_ , Mr. Matsubara mutters. _"Stuff that's popular in the doujinshi world is completely separate from commercial stuff"_.

Nakanogane continues his presentation.

" _I thought I saw it somewhere. I thought of Niwavideo, so I tried searching for original characters and secondary characters with high page views"_.

" _You're pretty sharp. Even though you're chubby"_ , Yuuya mocks him.

Ugh. Seriously, Grasshopper Glasses, shut up. It is very impolite of you to insult him before he has the chance to reveal his precious information to me. I don't like gratuitous interruptions.

" _Leave that out of this"_ , Nakanogane replies with a frown. _"I found this character who perfectly matches the description. Have a look"_.

It's her. It's definitely the Military Uniform Princess. The same _navy-blue military hat_ , the same _Spanish-style double-breasted coat_ , the same _evil look_ , the same _puffy skirt_ , that _weird rectangular part around the waist_ and that horrendous hair that gives her the appearance of _a light-blue ball of fur_ , like _a mutated mop_.

And she is the main character of a video? Whoever designed her, they must have wanted to make the animator's job difficult.

" _Her name is Altair"_ , Nakanogane says.

Finally! A name! A source! My enemy is not an unknown factor anymore. We just need to analyze her abilities, grab her author, and then we'll have the upper hand. From now on this campaign against "Altair" is going to be easy peasy. I'm sure of it.

…

Hey! What do you mean I have to wait for the next episode to know the rest? This is unfair! I'll complain to the magicians' trade union!

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

I didn't explain it back in the day, but I use italics for literal quotes from the anime. Until now, it's always been the dialogues, for obvious reasons, but episode 13 did something magical: a recap episode told from the point of view of Meteora's inner thoughts.

Surprise, surprise, it seems that this fic was more canon than I thought. It's not that canon Meteora was revealed to be evil (for now), but in her fantasies she's as egomaniac, hypocritical, prone to nicknames, dismissive of her "followers" and resentful as I imagined, and has a superiority complex and the desire to be admired and celebrated by all humanity. If you see lines of narration that are in italics, those are from Meteora's canon thoughts. So, yes, that means that "Grasshopper Glasses" is Meteora's canon inner nickname for Yuuya.

I'm lucky it was only a special intermission; had they decided to make the rest of the series like that, my fanfic would have lost its meaning ^_^;


	9. It's Fanfiction's Fault

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 8: IT'S FANFICTION'S FAULT**

Wow, it's been like 10 seconds since Nakanogane dropped the bomb about the real name of the Military Uniform Princess, but it feels as if we waited a whole week for the rest of the info. Time is relative, indeed.

My eyes are fixated on the screen.

" _Altair"_ , I repeat. _"That's her name"_.

I need to memorize it. In the future, I will erect triumphal arcs in every city of the world commemorating my victories against the enemies of the Holy Meteoric Empire, so Altair's name will likely be the first in the list. I could always leave it as "Military Uniform Princess" or "Mutated Mop", but I guess it wouldn't look so classy. I have a scholar's pride too.

" _And this character is based on another character from a social game called Eternal Wars Megalosphere. The character's name is Shirotsumekusa"_ , Nakanogane explains.

He opens a new window and puts both characters side by side.

Grasshopper Glasses frowns.

" _She looks totally different from her"_.

He's right. They're nothing alike! That _Shirotsunemiku_ or whatever she is called is a cutesy blob of pink hair and clover clothes, and she certainly doesn't look like a cold-blooded revolutionary. She can't be my rival! I refuse to accept the very notion of it.

" _That's right. She turned into a completely different character"_ , Nakanogane agrees.

" _So in other words, Shirotsumekusa and Altair are completely separate people, right?"_ , Kikuchihara, the government's lapdog, tries to sum up.

Well, of course they are. The only thing they have in common is their twintails. And given the same-facedness of so many manga artists, that should be enough to make her a person from another universe.

" _Saying that they're separate people isn't totally accurate"_ , Marine says, looking a bit upset. _"Altair is a really well-made secondary creation. A lot of secondary creations are just parodies, but a secondary creation with a plot that goes past the original story sometimes gets accepted as a separate story in its own right"_.

Sigh, of course the well-paid artist would try to defend her trade. "Secondary creations"? Are you trying to make them look inferior to the "really original" ones? Come on, Marine. I've seen the LN covers in Souta's bedroom. Don't try to tell me that Mr. Matsubara and you came up with the idea of a "valiant red-haired magic knight" on your own. So much for originality.

However, this also raises some questions. I must admit I'm still puzzled by my appearance in the AVALKEN game. The Meteora there was so boring, and proper, and good. Legendarily good, indeed, but where's my master plan? My ploy to take over the world? The secret twist at the end?

At first, I thought it would be hidden in my character description. Then, Yuuya's words made me consider the possibility that my current personality is the result of this world changing me. But what if I didn't change? What if I'm exactly the Meteora Österreich I'm supposed to be? Not the one from the game, but one of those "secondary creations". Could I be an alternative version of Meteora created by the sick mind of a deranged fan, someone so bored at life that they imagined me as a secretly evil and manipulative villain hellbent on taking over the universe?

Ha, ha, ha, as if! That theory is too crazy even for me.

Still, this represents an opportunity. It means that we don't need original authors to create new universes based on our own. Imagine it: an army of Meteoras is out there, waiting for me to reach out to them and conquer the multiverse together. I'm salivating at the opportunities…

" _So if someone other than Matsubara wrote a different story about me, does that mean another me that's not me would be born?"_ , Princess Tomato mutters.

Dammit, Tomato, why do you have to be so sharp at the most inconvenient times? I need to shoot down that idea ASAP, lest the others start realizing the implications too. The army of Infinite Meteoras is my plan, and mine alone.

I have an idea. It sounds stupid, but if they bought the Great Destruction theory…

" _That's not quite true"_ , I correct Princess Tomato. _"If the changes in the new story fit into the storyline of the original story, then the stories would still be consistent"_.

Yeah, right. Come on, is nobody going to ask how the hell I know that? The one who is hopping from world to world is Altair, not me (I wish it was me). Also, what about Princess Tomato not knowing anything of the events in her latest book? We're talking about 100% original material here, created by her official author, not fanfiction.

Quick, cover it up with more exposition before they realize how dumb this explanation is.

" _Blah, blah, blah, Kikuchihara said, blah, blah, blah, separate people, blah, blah, blah, Megalosphere, blah, blah, blah, their personalities and goals, blah, blah, blah, an icon with no backbone, blah, blah, blah, the worlds, blah, blah, blah, the recognition of others, blah, blah, blah, completely independent, blah, blah, blah..."_

Good, they don't seem to notice it. I'm a genius.

" _Then who is Altair's direct creator?"_ , Mr. Matsubara asks.

The question of the century, indeed. Nakanogane was kind enough to trace back Altair's character to a video called " _Altair: world Étude_ ". Franglais, huh. Ironically enough, the name of the author is written in Japanese. Shimazaki Setsuna.

" _I guess that's not the creator's real name"_ , Mr. Matsubara says, scratching his head.

" _I tried searching around, but I couldn't find any clues"_ , Nakanogane explains. _"I'm sure this is the author, but the author hasn't been online for three months"_.

" _I will request our specialty division to investigate"_ , Kikuchihara promises.

A roadblock. I guess things couldn't go as easily as I hoped for. Still, this is progress. Mr. Nakanogane, your service has been most welcome. I'll be generous and overlook your lolicon propaganda, and I 'll fulfill my promise to name a street after you in my future capital. If you keep up the good work, maybe you'll get a statue too.

" _She… Or it might be a he… If we can find out who it is, we can proceed to the next action"_ , I mutter.

At that moment, Kikuchihara takes out her phone and answers a call.

" _Yes. Yes. Everything's okay now. Please, bring them here immediately"_.

Them? Who is she talking about?

00000

If yesterday was my unlucky day, today is getting better and better. Not one, but two more Creators are in our clutches. After their abject failure at protecting Magane's author, this time the government didn't hesitate and brought them to our headquarters. One of them is a cool-looking and masculine woman that seems to be utterly bored despite the current situation. The other one is a long-haired man with glasses and stubble.

Kikuchihara presents them. The man is the author of Exclusive Underground, Yatoji Ryo, real name Goda Ryosuke. So he's the metaphorical father of Grasshopper Glasses. The woman is the author of Code Babylon, Suruga Shunma, real name Ohsawa Chika. Which means she created Blitz Talker, that old man with the gun. Now Altair's side won't be able to use her for a power-up.

Good, good. The keikaku is exceeding expectations. Nevertheless, I wonder how useful these authors will be. They look a bit dumb, especially the man.

" _So? I have a deadline. I'm busy. If you have something to say, keep it short"_ , he says.

I'll correct myself: he doesn't look dumb. He is dumb.

" _Hey, you wait"_ , Grasshopper Glasses stands up and faces his creator.

" _What? Why is a cosplayer from my manga here? Although, I'd say he's doing a good job"_.

Very, very dumb.

" _What do you mean "a good job"? I thought you weren't such a bad guy, but I'm disappointed. Selesia's god is a million times better than you. Get your act together. I thought you were a real name"_ , Grasshopper Glasses complains.

Cute. Wasn't Yuuya the same person who warned us against imagining the Creators as gods, pointing out that they would be just normal people? Ha! It stings when you meet yours, doesn't it? If Selesia's god is a million times better than yours, mine is a million times better than Selesia's. Because he's dead. Deceased gods are the best.

Yatoji Ryo remains unfazed.

" _The police came to my house all of a sudden, and talked about some nonsense, and brought me here. I got a lot to deal with too. Because I'm a real man"_.

I see that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Grasshopper Glasses, on the other hand, doesn't find it funny. All his philosophical coolness from the diner evaporates as he starts blaming his Creator for all the crap he had to endure in his world, not unlike Alicetaria's complaints. We all know how that ended.

" _Mirokuji, I want you to restrain yourself here"_ , I order him.

Does he listen? Nope, he summons his cursed ghost and throws her at his author. Geez, I didn't expect him to be so childish. Truly, what a disappointment.

Mr. Matsubara stands up too.

" _Mirokuji! Don't do anything to his right hand and his head"_ , he tells him.

Good thinking, Matsubara! Honestly, I don't mind if Grasshopper Glasses enjoys a bit of revenge. The gods know that most of these Creators deserve the punishment. However, wasting resources is a horrible thing to do. Break his legs or castrate him, I don't care, but make sure he's able to create more stories. We may need them.

00000

" _I'm sorry for asking you to come here"_ , a sheepish Souta says.

I admit that his call last night surprised me. He wanted to meet me, and me alone. Normally, I'd ignore such a petition, but the last events have taught me that these "gods" can actually be more helpful than my fictional brethren.

" _It's okay"_ , I say to calm him down. _"Nakanogane said this place is perfect for doing research. Right now he's searching a bookstore nearby. We are planning to meet later"_.

" _Oh, then that's good"_.

Awkward silence.

" _What happened? Souta?"_ , I ask him to make him talk. Lords of the abyss, he can be too shy sometimes. Once the novelty of the first days was gone, it seems he reverted to that famous allergy to women I heard of.

" _Nothing! I mean..."_ , he rambles.

" _You must have some business. That's why you contacted me"_.

" _Yes..."_

More awkward silence. Sigh. I don't know what I expected. A new revelation on Altair, like Nakanogane's? I guess I was being too optimistic.

" _By the way, did you get any new information?"_ , he suddenly asks.

" _Information?"_

" _Like… you found the person you were looking for, something like that"_.

His attempt at changing the subject is painfully obvious, but I'll play along. He's obviously nervous about something, but I can't see what it is. I tell him about our recent discoveries. Interestingly, he is shocked and then looks down.

" _Are you worried about something?"_ , I ask him.

" _No, not at all"_.

That must be the least convincing answer I've ever heard.

Ah, I get it: he had discovered it on his own, but didn't gather enough courage to tell us and now it's too late. He feels useless. Poor Souta. Don't worry, kid. Remember, you have a bright future ahead of you in the field of snacks and refreshments.

" _Thinking quietly on your own is good too"_ , I tell him. _"However, if your burden is heavy, sharing it with someone isn't a bad idea"_.

" _I recently… A lot has happened. I'm not sure where to start. Meteora, do you?"_

He's still a rambling mess. The more he looks at me, the more nervous he is. Oh, my, this is starting to look like a love confession. Could it be? What if this child fell in love with me and now he's trying to find the words to confess?

 _"No, never mind"_ , Souta gives up.

He stands up, but before he leaves I take his hand.

" _I'm your friend. It's okay, I want you to continue"_ , I tell him reassuringly.

Of course, I don't have the slightest intention of going out with him. But I can't blame him for being infatuated. I'm that awesome, and cool, and cute, and beautiful, and powerful, and intelligent, and charismatic, and sexy. Who wouldn't fall in love with me? It will be fun to hear him out. More food for my ego.

Also, I don't want him to leave yet. I've just glimpsed something I don't like. Or I should say "someone". I fear there's a spy nearby, and I think I know who it is.

Souta starts talking. A lot. To my surprise and disappointment, it's not a love confession. He tells me about a "person" who was jealous of their more talented friend and behaved like a miserable scumbag because of it. Ugh, that was pitiful. No, I don't mean that story, but his attempts to pretend he's talking about a different person and not about himself.

" _In the end, what should that person have done?"_ , he asks.

Sigh, this was a confession, but not the one I expected. Who does he think I am? His Lady and Savior? Well, technically I am, or I'll be soon enough. Perhaps this is an opportunity?

Until now, I've only been thinking of the imperial part of becoming a "Goddess-Empress". However, once I become the supreme deity of the multiverse, I'll be expected to answer or at least listen to people's prayers. My first idea was to throw Souta into the nearest fountain for making me lose my invaluable time, but that's unworthy of a goddess. The true overlord must rule with both love and fear.

" _Does he want to be forgiven, that person?"_ , I ask Souta.

He nods.

" _If he does want to be forgiven, then there is only one path. That person should try to get better than his friend, and then help his friend"_.

He nods again.

" _Jealousy and envy… We shouldn't deny that we feel these emotions. We should use them as hints to help us work on things seriously. However, if you pretend they don't exist, they turn into filth, and the filth builds up. The filth will leak up somewhere and contaminate your heart, and harm the other person, and then a negative cycle starts"_.

Learn from my example, Souta. I'm full of jealousy and envy too. Do you think I'm okay with that Altair having powers and knowledge I can only dream of? Do you think it's funny to pretend I'm the teacher's pet around government officials? And I must admit I'm a bit body-conscious when I'm around Princess Tomato. It would be too easy to lash out against this stupid land of the gods and behave like an unlikable bitch. But I don't do that. Instead, I channel my resentment and rancor towards a constructive goal. Only after I become Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse I'll be able to ensure that everyone gets their just deserts.

" _I hope I was able to answer your question. That would make me glad. What do you think, Souta?"_

It's a real question. I really need to practice my "Holy Mother Meteora" role.

And now, if you'll excuse me, I have a spy to catch.

00000

Come on, Chikujoin Magane. I know you're out there.

Did you think that you could go unnoticed? You may be from a setting that is very similar to this world, but your purple hair, your shark teeth and your golden eyes are unmistakable. I know it was you who I saw lurking around us. You wanted to know my plans, didn't you? Still, you didn't want to get too close, not in the presence of witnesses. But now I'm here, alone. The perfect victim.

She's going to attack any time now. And when she does, I'll crush her like the snake she is. Since I'm feeling generous, I'll give her a choice: to join me or perish.

Ah, the thrill of the hunt. The prey that becomes the predator. Magane is going to get a nasty shock.

...

Where the hell is that rotten psycho? I demand to be attacked right now!

…

Nothing. This is infuriating. She was supposed to be chasing me! Me!

I mean, the other alternative is that she was following Souta. But why would she do that? It makes no sense. Souta is just a helpless civilian that knows too much and is awfully close to everyone involved, someone incapable of offering physical resistance and whose emotional issues make him vulnerable to coercion and manipulation. Why would she…?

Oh, crap. I think I've made a mistake.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

Poor Meteora; that mistake is going to cost her. In any case, I wanted her to be aware of Magane's spying. I love Magane as a villain, but it's true that too often the narrative has been too kind on her, letting her go unnoticed despite (theoretically) being a wanted criminal with very recognizable features. Here Meteora notices her… only for her ego to ruin it.

Of course, she won't know about Mamika's role in this episode until later. She's only present in the first half of it.

By the way, was I the only one who thought that Meteora's pep talk in this episode sounded a bit sinister? It basically boiled down to "use your dark emotions to become better than the other person at whatever you're worried about". A family unfriendly aesop, although not necessarily a bad one.

 **Amatsumi:** Oh, yes, you're not the first to tell me that. I'm happy that my reading of the character wasn't so unbelievable after all, not even for her own creators XD


	10. A Minion In Trouble

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 9: A MINION IN TROUBLE**

I knew it! That daughter of a hyena is trying to steal my minion!

After losing sight of Magane this morning, I've spent the rest of the day searching for that psycho. I even brought Grasshopper Glasses with me. This wasn't what I had in mind when I asked him for a date, but now I'm not in the mood for romantic entanglements. We have rabid vermin to hunt. Also, he smokes. That's awfully unhealthy.

It's been long, and boring, and Grasshopper Glasses is impolite, but finally we find her.

As I feared, Magane is not alone. Sota is with her, near a cafe. They're talking, although I can't make out what they're saying. The shark girl is in a good mood, while Sota is on his knees, looking down. She sits on top of a fence and starts massaging him with her shoes, in a way that feels both dainty and mocking. Crap, she's playing the dom to his sub. I didn't expect Sota to be into that kind of thing. I should take notes for a minion management lesson… I mean, I should stop this before it goes too far. Sota is an invaluable member of my court. If he isn't around, who's going to bring me coffee?

We get closer. Now we can hear what Magane is saying.

" _Watching people do what I set them up to do is really fun"_ , she claims. _"I never have negative emotions like hate and resentment. There are no bad feelings involved when I'm having fun. How shall I put it? I have a noble heart"_.

Magane embraces Sota with her legs and forces him to look directly at her panties. Well, I suppose it's her panties. I can't see anything from my point of view and I can't rule out the possibility that she's going commando. If she's not wearing underwear, that would explain Sota's expression of dull horror. He's either having a mental breakdown or a severe allergic reaction.

The purple-haired freak notices Sota's blue screen of death, but she seems to mistake the true reason behind it and tells him:

" _Don't worry, Sota. What was her name, Aluminium Foil? Oh, Altair! I'll lay a landmine for her too and make sure it explodes!"_

What. Destroying Altair is my plan! She's my rival, not yours! I'm the one who is telling people she's a danger and who is using their fear to strengthen my position. Don't steal my tricks. Also, "Aluminium Foil"? What a stupid nickname. My nicknames are far better than yours.

We have to act. Now. Grasshopper Glasses isn't very enthusiastic about it, but he agrees. I'm not the only one who finds Magane annoying.

He emerges from the shadows calmly, enjoying his cigarette for a bit longer.

" _Hey, I feel bad to ask, but could you stop trying to fool Sota?"_

Magane doesn't look very happy with the interruption, but Grasshopper Glasses ignores her and speaks to her prisoner instead.

" _Hey, Sota. I bet they told you to listen to other people when you were a kid. But people like her, they take advantage of nice people like you. They use you until you destroy yourself"._

Grasshopper Glasses sounds bitter. Talking from experience, I presume? He threatens Magane with his sword, but the psycho is less than impressed.

" _That was so mean"_ , she complains. _"Watch your words, boy. Do I look like such a bad person? You hurt me and my virgin heart"_.

" _You're not a person. You're just a laughing piece of skin hanging over a bunch of lies"_.

" _Oh, what a cool compliment"_.

" _Stay back, Sota!"_ , Grasshopper Glasses shouts.

And they jump, and fight, and go away. My cue to appear. Why risk getting close to a known murderer when you have a meat shield to do it for you? Although, now that I think about it. Grasshopper Glasses is a murderer too. I read the synopsis of Exlusive Underground. It seems that he deserted his team after killing his friend and the hero's sister. Had I known it earlier, I wouldn't have been so interested in recruiting Magane. Oh, well, that's a mistake that we're going to correct today.

I descend upon my minion.

" _Sota"_ , I say in the most neutral tone I can.

He looks at me confused. He hasn't realized the situation he's in. But when he does, he immediately lowers his head and begs for forgiveness.

" _Sorry! Sorry, Meteora! I did it again. Why didn't I do it earlier?"_ , he says while sobbing uncontrollably.

I approach him. Yes, Sota, you were useless again. You should have told me that Magane contacted you. But you didn't, and I had to look for her for hours. However, this situation we're in stems from my inability to see that Magane was after you, not after me. I'm human, after all. A superior kind of human, and soon to become the supreme being of all existence, but I still make mistakes. For that, I'll be magnanimous and I'll only ask you to…

" _I didn't help Shimazaki"_ , he continues. _"I felt she deserved what she got"_.

What? Did he say "Shimazaki"? Like Shimazaki Setsuna, the Creator of Altair?

" _Shimazaki hadn't changed at all. I wanted Shimazaki to… But it wasn't true. I was just frustrated that I didn't measure up. I made her die!"_

It's difficult to understand him with all his sobbing, and I lack data and context. But if what I fear he's saying is true, if Shimazaki Setsuna, Altair's author, is dead, we have a very big problem. I need him to calm down and talk coherently.

" _That time, I knew there was something you were afraid to talk about. I thought I was being kind by not asking you about it"_ , I mutter. Well, that and I thought my pep talk was good enough and I didn't need to worry about the mundane problems of one of my minions. _"But I was foolish. I was careless"_.

" _No!"_ , Sota protests, crying in my arms. _"I'm the one who was careless! Not only Shimazaki. I… Even Mamika!"_

Wait. Has he said 'Mamika'? My cute Magical Slowpoke Mamika? Does he mean she's dead?

No.

No!

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

She can't be dead! I refuse to accept it! I was going to make her change sides, to turn against her comrades and become my exterminating angel in pink! With her raw power, my victory against Altair was assured. And now… now… I must think of something, quickly. Where's her body? Necromancy isn't my forte, but with my Magic Book there's no spell I can't learn. I don't know if a zombie Mamika will be able to use the "power of smiles" or whatever her magic source is called, but I need to try.

As for Sota, I'd like to squeeze him until he spills all the beans, but he's a sobbing mess and I'm afraid he will break if I push him further. Also, there's the matter of Magane. I need to make sure the fight is going according to plan. But I'm not leaving without telling him what I think of his pathetic performance.

" _Sota. If you are aware that it is your fault that you hurt someone, then you must not forget about it. You must not use pleasant words to forget about it. Do not look away. Continue to ask yourself what you can do. In other words, that is the reason for your living"_.

Never forget, Sota, that you live because I allow it. You failed big time and now you'll have to make up for it. Don't you dare run away from your responsibilities. I won't tolerate any memory lapses, or convenient distractions, or willful omissions. When I go back, I expect you to man up and prove your usefulness to me. If I deem your words insufficient, you better start looking for new ways to be useful. Otherwise, the punishment will be grim.

" _The world requires choice and resolution"_ , I insist. _"Embrace it, and face it"_.

Fortune favors the bold. And I favor resolute minions, not worthless crybabies.

Sota stops crying and nods. He gets it. Good, perhaps there's still hope for him. Having to punish minions is bad for morale.

Now, let's see how Grasshopper Glasses is doing.

00000

Pitiful. Grasshopper Glasses hasn't hit her even once. What, is she a superhuman too? An athletics champion? An Olympic gymnast? Or is Grasshopper Glasses just that bad at aiming?

" _This is no match for me"_ , Magane mocks him. _"What do you think, bad boy?"_

" _I'll show you! I've never met a girl who was fine after getting hit with this!"_ , he claims. Well, yeah, but your problem is that you have to hit her to begin with.

Grasshopper Glasses uses his sword to create a shockwave that devastates the parking lot. Surprisingly, this time Magane doesn't try to avoid the attack. She stands there, with her arms folded, and mumbles something. When the shockwave reaches her, she's unharmed. Around her, however, the pavement is destroyed.

"What did you do?", an angry Grasshopper Glasses asks.

Magane bursts out in a roar of laughter.

" _Yes, yes, that's it, that's it!"_ , she says and points at Yuuya. _"You like like a cat that's been run over. I just love seeing that look on your face. You're as stupid as you look"_.

She's certainly right. I expected better from Grasshopper Glasses. He was present when we told Kikuchihara about Magane's power, the Infinite Deception of Words. But he probably didn't listen. Sigh. Personally, I'd love to see Grasshopper Glasses being taken down a peg, but this shark girl is a wild card who tried to steal my minions from me. She must die.

" _Be careful, Mirokuji. Her power is to reverse cause and effect by making the person under her spell deny what she asks"_ , I deign to inform Grasshopper Glasses.

Surely, he won't fall for the same trick again. Right?

He smiles.

" _I see"_.

" _Come on"_ , Magane invites us to attack.

This time, Grasshopper Glasses doesn't speak. He just sends another shockwave with his sword. To his surprise (and mine too), that daughter of a hyena keeps smiling. The attack is a complete failure, despite not using her power. Or perhaps it's already active? I think I understand. And I don't like it.

" _Once laws have been bent, they stick"_ , I mutter.

What a problematic power. What is the limit of it? Could she just tell someone that she's the Empress of Japan, and when they deny it she will make it true, regardless the laws of causality? Please, tell me that's not the case. An overpowered Mutated Mop is enough.

 _"Meteora!"_ , someone shouts.

Sota? What's he doing here? Oh, yes, I told him to be more proactive. Silly me. 10 points for the spirit, but right now he's a liability. I don't have time to play with him. Grasshopper Glasses and I must think of a new strategy to take down Magane.

" _Attacking Magane with Kuronagimaru won't work anymore. Probably not until Magane dies"_ , I tell him.

" _No way!"_

Of course, if Magane dies, why would Grasshopper Glasses want to attack her? Well, it would make sense if he was a sadistic necrophiliac, but I don't think that's the case. Or is it?

" _I hate it. I don't like spoilers"_ , Magane complains jokingly. _"Whenever I see someone having fun giving away the secret behind a magic trick, it spoils the fun! I hate it when people do that"_.

Cry me a river.

" _Hangaku!"_ , Grasshopper Glasses summons his warrior ghost.

Sadly, the ghost's attacks are as accurate as her master's. You know, I'm starting to suspect that Magane has already used her power with him to make him fail all of his attacks. Otherwise, I can't understand how come the guy who faced Blitz Talker, Mamika and Alicetaria at the same time is incapable of landing a single hit on that shark girl.

Magane jumps so high she lands on top of a near building. Ok, not even I can do that without spells. Where does that agility come from? I would have some very strong words with her author, had she not killed him already.

She ignores Grasshopper Glasses and looks directly at me.

" _What do you think, nerdy girl? The plan I gave Sota fell through. But instead, how about making a deal with me? A project for destroying Altair. It's a bargain!"_

Nerdy girl? Me? I'm the Sage of the End of the World! The Seeker of a Thousand Miles! I'm not 'nerdy'. I… Wait, she's trying to make me babble like a fool. That's how she tricks her victims. If I stay silent, I win.

And I'm not interested in making deals, thank you very much. You had your opportunity to swear allegiance to my cause. Now it's too late… for you.

" _Hey! You don't want to talk to me?"_ , she complains. _"Or are you scared? You don't want to lose an argument with me? Even you, Meteora, the Seeker of a Thousand Miles?"_

She knows. That damn psycho knows that my arguments are not as solid as I boast. She probably learned about them from Sota. If I give her a cue, I fear that she may unravel the castle of deception and lies I've been building since I met Princess Tomato and the others.

" _Provoking people and taking advantage of their vulnerabilities, it's your same old trick"_ , I retort. No, I won't fall for that trick. Not me. I'm Meteora the Unperturbed, the Undaunted, the Deadpan.

Magane sighs.

" _Oh, well. Trying to destroy each other would have been fun. But I hate forcing things. People should live freestyle. Or else they won't become happy!"_

Grasshopper Glasses doesn't find it funny.

" _That trick bag is so full of herself"_ , he grumbles.

Magane ignores him again.

" _Oh, that's right, that's right. Meteora, I know I just said that it's too bad that you won't play with me. But it looks like there are other people who want to play with you too. See?"_

She points to the sky. There's a sonic boom, a missile falls from the sky and lands in front of us, raising a cloud of dust and debris. And in the middle of it, a very angry-looking Alice In Wonderland appears riding her horse and ready for battle.

" _I have been searching for you"_ , she says. _"Meteora!"_

This is going to hurt, isn't it?

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

A quick update, since watching a new episode is good for inspiration ^_^;

-The series never explained why Meteora and Yuuya managed to find Sota and Magane there. Were they following Sota? Were they on patrol? Did the government call? Perhaps the extra material explains it, but that's yet another plot hole of canon. Here, after Meteora's mistake in the previous chapter, Magane becomes her most urgent target and spends hours looking for her.

-I planned at first to have Meteora hear all the conversation between Magane and Sota, but after rewatching the episode I noticed that our beloved evil overlord was surprised when Sota informed her that Mamika had died. Thus, at best she could have heard only the final part of the conversation.

-Why would an evil overlord be so kind to a failure of a minion like Sota who almost betrayed her? Well, between Mamika's fate and the reveal that he knows about Altair's author, Meteora can't let him die so easily. Not until he explains himself. Yet again her pep talk sounded a bit darker than the usual fictional variety. Incidentally, this also will explain why Meteora tries to put Sota out of harm's way in the next episode… only for him to risk death yet again. Perhaps she shouldn't have encouraged him to be more resolute.


	11. Can't Argue With Muscle Brains

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 10: CAN'T ARGUE WITH MUSCLE BRAINS**

Alice In Wonderland is angry. Very, very angry. She has fallen from sky and seems ready for a bloody battle. I don't know if Altair sent her on a mission or she is here on her own volition, but my analytical mind foresees that I'm in trouble. Well, it helps that Alicetaria is shouting my name for everyone to hear:

" _I have been searching for you, Meteora!"_

Meanwhile, Chikujoin Magane seems very pleased, which is bad news.

" _Ms. Knight, nice!"_ , she says and gives Alicetaria a thumbs-up. Oh, crap, did she make an alliance with Altair's side? Is she playing both sides?

Or not. Alice In Wonderland ignores her and, without warning, charges at me with her lance. Wow, she's fast! But I'm faster at raising a magic shield. I know what happened the last time we met. I don't want to be thrown against another bridge, thank you very much.

Fortunately, this time I'm paired up with a more competent fighter than Princess Tomato.

" _Hangaku!"_

Grasshopper Glasses summons his cursed ghost warrior, and Alice In Wonderland can't help but put some distance between us. She also remembers what happened last time: that punk of Yuuya was beating the crap out of everyone single-handedly before they decided for a "strategic retreat". Ha!

Still, I'd really like to have numerical superiority. This is our opportunity to take two enemy pieces for the prize of one. We can't let them escape!

" _Sota, contact Kikuchihara!"_ , I tell my other minion.

Sota's not a fighter, he'll be useless here, but now he can have his chance to shine as my errand boy! He still has to make amends for his failure with Magane and Mamika. I'm most merciful, but I don't forget easily.

Alice In Wonderland and Grasshopper Glasses clash. To my surprise, they seem to be evenly matched this time. Yuuya doesn't have the surprise factor anymore, and Alicetaria probably thought of plans to counter his moves. She mocks him for his lack of technique.

" _You don't even know the basics of how to fight!"_

" _Mirokuji!"_ , I shout.

Seriously, man, what the heck are you doing? You're supposed to be a Big Bad! A cold blooded traitor that murdered his best friend's sister! You trounced Alicetaria the other day. What is happening now? Did Magane tire you out?

Wait, wait. This is just the prelude to his action-genre second wind. Grasshopper Glasses strikes back!

" _You think so?"_ , he growls, forcing Alice In Wonderland to step back.

At that moment, Magane stops the fight with a whistle.

" _Want me to help, Ms. Knight?"_ , she asks Alicetaria.

What? No, no, no! This was supposed to be a proper unfair fight! Me and Grasshopper Glasses against Alice In Wonderland, 2 on 1. Thankfully, it doesn't look like Alicetaria will accept her offer… but then the shark girl's words hit the right spot.

" _You have unsettled business with the geeky girl, not the bad boy, right? I'll take care of the bad boy. Why don't you and the geeky girl get in touch with your girly sides together while you work on killing each other?"_

I'll kill her! I'll kill her and all her ancestors, and then I will feed her remains to the pigs, and then I'll kill the pigs and feed their remains to the worms! And then I'll kill the worms and feed their remains to… to… I'll think of something then. Who is she calling 'geeky'? Wait! That's not the problem right now.

That purple-haired bitch has thrown all my plans into disarray. Even if it was 2 on 2, Grasshopper Glasses could hold his own against Alice In Wonderland, and Magane is no match for me. But now? This is chaos. I don't like chaos.

Also, she positioned herself so they stand between Yuuya and me. I can't team up with him right now. Clever girl.

Fuck it. I have weapons. I'm not going to wait for Kikuchihara's stupid permission, not when that brainless knight is charging again. Thankfully, Princess Tomato is not here to point out how out-of-character this is for me.

" _In the name of the principle of Ars Magnas, just as the spirits create structure from Topos, which presides over all creation, the spirits shall refine steel to become the form I desire!"_ , I chant.

Like in my first fight with Altair, I summon six anti-tank missile launchers from thin air. Ah, so beautiful!

Taste modern weaponry, you medieval sow.

" _That will not work on me!"_

Shockingly, Alice In Wonderland uses her lance to destroy every missile at the same time. More shockingly, the subsequent explosions don't cause her any harm. What, is she immune to the laws of physics too?

She raises her gauntlet.

" _Götz von Berlichingen! Answer my gauntlet's summon. Knight of Dawn… reveal yourself here!"_

Oh, oh. This is bad. This is very bad. I've been reading the character profiles of my enemies (and minions). Alice In Wonderland may be a brute fighter, but she's also a princess from a German-sounding country and her family's heirloom is overpowered AF. For some reason, it's named after a guy from the land of the gods, some Imperial knight or mercenary from real Germany. Whoever he was, I'm pretty sure that he couldn't summon a huge army of winged knights with lances. Which is exactly what Alice In Wonderland does.

What? Are they going to throw themselves at me at the same time, or something like that? Is 'charge, charge, charge' the only kind of attack that girl knows?

Nope, it isn't. The summoned knights fire lasers. Lasers! See? I told you she was overpowered.

I need to run.

00000

It feels like minutes, but I'm pretty sure we've been playing cat and mouse for only a couple of seconds. My awesome flight skills are enough to avoid the lasers, but then Alice In Wonderland jumps in front of me.

" _Face me in a fair battle, Meteora!"_

Yeah, right. If I do that, you'll kill me. Not that it matters much, for she pummels me with her lance and throws me against some metallic structures. Yay, this time it's not a bridge! I'm so happy...! In case you didn't notice, I was trying to be sarcastic. My poor face. My poor back. My poor internal organs…

She dismisses her useless laser-knight army and starts walking towards me.

" _I shall not let you die yet. You shall pay for the death of my dear friend Mamika!"_ , she barks.

WHAT? All this beating is because she thought I killed Mamika? I didn't! I'm certainly not above murdering someone to fulfill my ambitions, but this time I'm 100% innocent.

Phew, perhaps there's a chance to turn this around. Surely, that knight will stop once she listens to reason… unless she's clever enough to notice that I didn't attempt to negotiate when I had the upper hand and thought she had been ordered to kill me for being Altair's greatest threat. Oh, well, if she points it out, I can always call it "aggressive negotiations". Diplomacy is the art of bullshit.

Now, if only I could stand up…

" _Wait!"_ , someone shouts.

Who…? Sota! What is he doing here? Oh, crap. Tell me he has called Kikuchihara before coming here or, gods help me, I'm going to use his own guts to strangle him.

" _Sorry, Meteora"_ , he says. _"I can't run away"_.

Yes, you can. You have legs.

He's so pitiful that the moment Alice In Wonderland glares at him, he almost pees himself. Yet he doesn't back down and starts arguing with her about the merits and demerits of her story and character. What a bunch of nonsense. Her setting was a shitty hellhole and the gods of this side used it to feel better about themselves. Ok, move on. I'm not interested.

In Sota's defense, however, the argument is not the only thing he has in mind. Little by little, he places himself between Alice In Wonderland and me. He's planning to become my human shield, and I didn't need to give him an order! Good boy, Sota!

Of course, Alice In Wonderland isn't impressed, nor is she trying to stop him. Why should she? The moment she hits him with her lance, he'll become mincemeat.

" _Step aside, boy"_ , she orders him.

" _I will not"_.

" _It is not my intention to involve you in this fight. Step aside"_.

" _I'm not moving. The Alicetaria I know would do the same thing. So that's why I'm doing this too!"_

Sota, it's not the same. Alice In Wonderland can withstand a conventional bombardment. You can't. I do appreciate your eagerness to sacrifice your life for me, but your quality as a meat shield is lacking.

Finally, I manage to stand up and I put my hand on his back while I try to regain my balance.

" _Step down"_ , I tell him.

" _But, Meteora…!"_

No, Sota, shut up. It's time for grown-ups to talk. Your arguments about her backstory and your perverse reading of it only made her angrier. You know, you could have started with the most important bit of data here: that I didn't kill Mamika! Seriously, by not defending my innocence, you made me look worse. Step back and let me do the talking.

" _Do you repent of your actions now?"_ , Alice In Wonderland asks me.

" _Alicetaria, I will speak honestly. No matter what happened, I would never hurt Mamika"_.

I might have planned to manipulate and corrupt her, and I did fantasize about unleashing her against my enemies. Including you, stupid knight. But killing her? Never! She was perfect. Her death saddens me as much as you. Unless she and you were… Ehem, I'm not accusing anyone of anything, but it would certainly explain many things.

Unfortunately, my opponent can't see reason. _She's all muscle and no brains_. She's not Alice In Wonderland, she is… she is… _Muscle Brains_! I'm so clever.

" _Even now, do you still try to deceive me with your sophistry? Mamika was determined and departed before me! She tried to propose a reconciliation with you. But the negotiations failed, and her murder was the result!"_

Wait, Mamika wanted to make peace with me? Ha, I knew my words worked very well! However, that means that the main suspect should be someone who tried to stop that alliance from happening. Whoever it was, they didn't want me to have my own Pink Angel of Death.

" _No! It's one of Magane's lies!"_ , Sota interrupts.

Boy, didn't we agree that I would do the talking? Geez. And how do you know it's one of Magane's lies? What did that shark girl tell you? When we get back, you'll have a lot to confess.

" _Silence!"_ , Muscle Brains barks. _"Silence. Please"_.

Oh, my. She's about to cry. Perhaps my guess about her relationship with Magical Slowpoke wasn't as far-fetched as I thought.

" _I… have lost everything I believed in. My world and my ally… I do not know where the truth is anymore"_. Suddenly, Muscle Brains takes her lance again. That doesn't look good. _"However, even though I may be an empty shell, if I may still be granted a knight's honor, then in the name of my honor I must have revenge for my fallen friend. That is the only purpose I have left to me now!"_

Ok, it's confirmed: _Muscle Brains can't hold a conversation_.

The brainless knight rushes to hit me with her lance. Sota, always the dolt, rushes to place himself as my human shield. And I rush to push him away. It's not that I want to protect him or anything like that, s-so don't get the wrong idea, do you hear me? It's just that I can't let him die until he spills all the beans about Mamika, Magane and Altair's Creator.

Of course, that means that I get the blow instead.

…

It hurts. A lot. And the pavement of the parking lot is not the softest place to land. Oh, gods, why is it always me? Why can't Muscle Brains hit Princess Tomato instead?

Oh, and talking about Tomato…

CRASH! In a flash of red light, my red haired minion lands in front of Muscle Brains. Yay, reinforcements!

Sota hurries to assist me. I'm still groggy and I can't see anything. But I can listen to Sota's telephone conversation. Luckily, he did what I told him to do and Kikuchihara is coming here with government forces. Kanoya should be around too.

" _What about Gigas Machina?"_ , Sota asks.

" _Kanoya is waiting in the sky"_ , Kikuchihara answers. _"We can't let him land in the city. Using him is our last resort"_.

Last resort? Send the huge robot right now! Your future Goddess-Empress demands it!

While Sota breaks my eardrums by shouting my name time and again, Princess Tomato confronts Muscle Brains.

" _Look at what you did! A weak little magician is the only one you could defeat?"_ , she mocks the blonde brute.

Who are you calling "weak little magician", Tomato? Should I remind you of how you struggled in _a fight against a kid who knew a bit of attack magic?_ Sheesh. I wonder if you'd feel so confident if Muscle Brains impaled you from side to side…

00000

Well, that was awkward.

I don't know what happened, but in the middle of the fight Muscle Brains managed to open a brand new tunnel in Tomato's abdomen. Wasn't she going to parry the blow? Sota! Stop trembling in sheer terror and describe the events to me. I need to know…

" _Your destruction is so beautiful"_ , a voice from above says. _"Holopsicon. The Third Movement of the Cosmos. Representation Exposition"_.

Oh, shit. It's her. The Military Uniform Princess. Altair. She's come to kick the dog to death now that her side has the upper hand, hasn't she? I hate her so much… because that's exactly what I'd have done in her place.

If this is a nightmare, I want to wake up.

At that moment, military vehicles appear and a squad of soldiers surround Altair and aim their weapons at her. An impressive show of force. But that's all it is, a show, no one is dumb or suicidal enough to shoot. Even disciplined soldiers know when they're outclassed.

" _Aaaagh!"_

Princess Tomato steps back and lies just besides me. Her creator, Mr. Matsubara, and his friend Nakanogane arrive to the scene and hurry to tend to her wounds. Hey, what about me? I need medical treatment too!

Of course, my rival isn't going to let this golden opportunity escape.

" _Ms. Knight, behead her"_ , Altair orders Muscle Brains. _"Her death is the herald of the world's revolution"_.

I don't know if she's talking about Tomato or me. Not that it would matter much; that twintailed brat is going to kill us both soon enough.

Thankfully, Muscle Brains isn't moving. As a heroic character, finishing fallen enemies might not be her style. My relief doesn't last long. Altair hasn't come alone.

" _Blitz"_.

The hardboiled detective from Code Babylon flies down.

" _Dear, dear. Doing the dirty work is my job?"_ , the bearded old man complains. And yet, he fires his gun without a moment of hesitation. Shit.

" _Hey!"_

Grasshopper Glasses! He's come back! And in the nick of time. He saves Princess Tomato's forehead and starts taunting Blitz Talker. As cocky as ever. Does that mean he managed to kill that Magane once and for all?

While Grasshopper Glasses draws Blitz Talker's attention, Gigas Machina comes down at full speed. It seems Kanoya isn't going to listen to the government's stupid regulations anymore.

Far from being concerned. Altair sounds amused.

" _The time is ripe. It would be interesting to test the pillar. Holopsicon, the Twentieth Movement of the Cosmos. Factor Mimic"_.

Honestly, her words don't make any sense. But she must have done something, for suddenly a new Gigas Machina appears and the two machines start fighting each other.

She's too OP.

This is a disaster. We must retreat now. If those JSDF guys think we're going to fight the battle for them once we recover, they're nuts. I must scare them into thinking we have no choice but to run away.

" _She's… planning to start the collision of the worlds. Get away from here now..."_ , I mutter. I hope it was convincing.

" _Yes… Run away now… Even if you can only save yourselves… Buy some time..."_ , Princess Tomato supports me.

She's dying, yet she's using her last energies to say I'm right. A role model for all future minions.

But Mr. Matsubara is having none of it.

" _Shut up, stupid!"_ , he shouts, startling everyone. _"What's up with you? Telling us to run away… Telling us to save ourselves… Anyone could have written a line like that! I… didn't make you into a character who says such useless lines!"_

How egotistical can that pervert author be? Is he cross that he didn't write her death scene himself?

" _Selesia! Listen to me. Listen up! The Selesia Upitiria I created… I'm not going to let her die from something like this! I would never let her get killed by some sketch drawn by a nameless kid! As long as I'm your creator, I'm never going to let you die such a stupid death! Never!"_

Actually, Mr. Matsubara, it was Muscle Brains who impaled Tomato, not Altair. Being killed by a heroic knight is the proper end of many a minion. There's no reason to feel ashamed by it. Princess Tomato was never true Dragon material, if you know what I mean, so this end is natural. Now, I'm the real mastermind here, so please take me out of this place as quickly as you…

What the… Why is he opening his laptop? Why is he calling Marine to send him some data? I don't understand… Has the grief made him lose his mind?

A story appears on screen. It looks terribly familiar.

" _This..."_ , Sota mutters. _"Mr. Matsubara!"_

He knows. This is the story Mr. Matsubara created for the rewriting experiment. Princess Tomato was supposed to get some new powers thanks to it. Obviously, it failed.

" _It's impossible, Matsubara. Revising the story..."_ , I try to warn him.

" _I know! So I'm going to try. I'm going to make the readers sympathize!"_

Sigh. He's going to try the rewriting again. It's my fault, really. I deceived them. I suspected that he wouldn't be able to change Tomato because she comes from the anime, not from the light novel. As I foresaw, the experiment was a complete failure, but I made them continue through the wrong path in order to make them think that Altair was lying about the rewriting process. I still don't know how that miraculous possibility works, but I'm 99% sure this is not the way.

If I wasn't fearing for my life, I'd feel sorry for Mr. Matsubara. He's going to be very disappointed once his creature kicks the bucket.

Oblivious to my misgivings, Mr. Matsubara uploads Marine's drawing and his new story to the Internet.

" _Come on! Come on! Please..."_ , he begs to the gods of the land.

And the gods answer his plea.

Seconds, then minutes. The numbers grow. The story is spreading like wildfire. Nakanogane announces that it has been featured on a news site. It's uncanny. Do Japanese otakus lack social lives? Do they wait like vultures on the Internet until a piece of news of their favorite series appears?

Oh, well. In the end, it doesn't matter. This is not how…

...what the hell is that red light and why is it enveloping Princess Tomato?

00000

I don't believe it. I can't believe it. It worked! The rewriting worked!

Princess Tomato has been reconstructed in a cloud of red pixels. Now she appears dressed in the new clothes designed by Marine, with a new sword and surrounded by powerful flames. Just like in the story that Matsubara created.

I'm so confused right now. Wasn't Tomato from the anime? If she's from the light novels, how can she not remember the events from the last book, yet she can be changed by a short story that hasn't even been published? It makes no sense!

But that's not important right now. The important thing is that… YES! THE REWRITING IS POSSIBLE! Honestly, I was dubious. Although I've never stopped dreaming about the possibilities, lately I was starting to consider that it might have been just that, a dream. But it isn't! The power of the creator gods is real! MWAHAHAHAHA! OMNIPOTENCE! OMNISCIENCE! There's nothing I can't achieve! What did Nakanogane say? "The sky's the limit". I will break the sky! I will break the gods! ALL SHALL KNEEL BEFORE METEORA ÖSTERREICH!

Mr. Matsubara, today you've done me a great service by proving that character rewriting is possible. I shall name a whole city in your honor. Perhaps in the very world you created, once I become the supreme ruler of the multiverse.

As if to prove the power of the rewriting, Princess Tomato proceeds to crush Muscle Brains with her new flames.

" _Aaaaaaaah!"_

It's so pretty. The molten pavement. The burns in Muscle Brain's armor. The surprised look in Altair's face…

Suddenly, a weird thing happens. Altair turns blue, literally. Her image is distorted by interference. The same happens to the copy of Gigas Machina she has summoned. This time, the Military Uniform Princess looks concerned.

" _The physical image is tearing apart at its seams… Just as I thought"_ , she mutters, the she turns to look at us. _"If I shake the pillar now, then I would be the one who is repelled by the world. So that's how it works"_.

Wait... Wait, wait, wait. That sounds suspiciously similar to the dumb theories I spouted during Operation Scapegoat. You know, all that nonsense about the "collision of worlds", the "coefficient of elasticity", the "equilibrium mechanics"… But it was a lie! A way to make Altair look like a genocidal loony. The Great Destruction can't be happening! It's impossible! Right? RIGHT?

Oh, my. Oh, my. Oh, my. I think I'm going to throw up.

" _Blitz, Alicetaria"_ , she calls her minions. _"The stars are not in alignment yet. This is enough for today"_.

The Military Uniform Princess looks at us one last time.

" _That was a good performance. When the time comes, we shall meet again"._

She disappears in a cloud of pixels. Her cheap copy of Gigas Machina does the same. Blitz Talker and Muscle Brains get away too. The JSDF do the same thing they've done until now to stop them: nothing at all. Sigh, what a tiresome day.

Oh, and it seems that Princess Tomato is back to square one. Her new clothes evaporate and the lance hole is back. Geez, we need to do more rewriting tests.

" _Get her to the hospital!"_ , Kikuchihara orders her men.

Oh, yeah. I suppose we should do that first. And I… I need to rest for a bit. Wake me up when the world makes sense again.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

As Magane said at the end of the episode, this is the end of part 1 of Re:Creators. And taking advantage of this, I make an announcement: THIS FIC IS GOING ON HIATUS. My projects are piling up and deadlines are closing in, so I need to save up my writing energies for the time being. I'm also afraid, as Alivan64 pointed out to me, that I may catch up too quickly and miss important information later (like the famous recap in episode 13, which was essential for this very chapter).

But fear not! The story will continue IN SEPTEMBER. Readers of my previous stories know that I loathe seeing unfinished fics and that I fulfill my promises in that regard. After all, the anime of Re:Creators will only last for 22 episodes, so it's not as if this fic will go on forever either. Also, if possible, I'll update chapters 11, 12 and 13 before that. But no weekly releases, I'm afraid.


	12. It's Treason, Then

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 11: IT'S TREASON, THEN  
**

I have a dream.

It's a beautiful dream. Everything's perfect. I'm perfect. The most excellent, most glamorous, most talented, most beautiful, sexiest, cutest magician in the world. My clothes are a bit too revealing for my taste, but I suppose it's the result of having to live with a walking Ms. Fanservice and deal with a bunch of perverted authors.

If someone among you lot dares to suggest that my subconscious may be overcompensating due to an inferiority complex about my body, I'll turn you into frogs and burn you alive.

In said dream, I, _the treasure of the entire universe_ , defeat that stupid Military Uniform Princess with a couple of overpowered spells. So elegant! So glorious! After saving the world from that evil, evil threat, everyone praises me as their Lady and Savior. I can see it: _humankind will celebrate this day for all eternity, sell souvenirs with my image and create holidays in my name_. They'll congratulate me and cry:

"All hail Meteora Österreich!"

Then, for some reason, the dream changes and I'm playing pool with the other Creations as the balls. Weird, but also satisfying. It makes me feel like an omnipotent goddess… which is exactly what I aim to become.

Yes, it's a good dream. But like all dreams, it ends when the dreamer has to wake up.

I hate reality.

00000

When I wake up, I feel disoriented. I'm in a hospital or a clinic. Gods, I miss the healing system of my world. When I take over the multiverse, healthcare will be a priority. Go to the holy imperial temples, give your money to the priests of Goddess-Empress Meteora and one second later you'll be healed. White magic is so efficient!

My minions are overjoyed when they hear I'm awake. It's evident that they're lost without me. They say:

"Oh, glorious leader! Oh, wise and mighty Meteora! This is a dark moment indeed. Your favored champions have been defeated, the enemy is on the rise and the government is in shambles. And for a time we thought we would lose you too. We begged the gods, cried until our tears flooded the room and sacrificed newborn babies to the demons of hell so you could survive your grievous injuries. But now you're with us again! Please, lead us! Without your guidance, we are but helpless children".

Well, perhaps they didn't use those exact words, and I must admit that I'm still under the influence of the sedatives, but you get the gist.

In any case, when Marine and Nakanogane start explaining what happened while I was sleeping, things don't look good. Oh, yes, Princess Tomato survived and now we know that rewriting is possible, but Altair and her minions beat us to a pulp, Magane escaped and Yuuya has been severely compromised: he lost his cursed ghost. And that's despite my warnings about being careful around the Wild Psycho. But did he pay any attention? No, of course he didn't. Now he's broody and gloomy. Ha! _Serves you right, Grasshopper Glasses_.

Oh, and Mamika is confirmed to be dead. I had planned for her to become my ultimate minion. Now she's gone. It's such a waste.

What about Kanoya? Kikuchihara called him and, according to her, the lolicon pilot has taken Souta for a ride on his giant robot. I don't know if that's literal or a metaphor for some kind of yaoi. Honestly, I don't care. Just tell them to come back ASAP. I need to plan my next move and I want all my minions close.

00000

In the meantime, a doctor and a nurse take care of me. They're amazed by my recovery rate. Something about having "the same composition as humans" but different "physiological abilities". Of course, I'm awesome. But I resent a bit the implication that I'm not human. I am human (for now); it's just that humanity in my world was a superior race. These "gods" are so weak and fragile that I almost pity them. Almost.

Good news: Princess Tomato is recovering fast. Bad news: apparently, she's recovering faster than me. Her wounds were far more serious and she had to be intubated, yet she managed to wake up before me. Is she trying to one up the great Meteora? W-well, I could have healed myself if so I wished, b-but I didn't want to make the doctors look bad! See? That's what it means to be considerate!

Sometimes, my kindness is off the charts.

Nevertheless, the situation is dire. To think I slandered the Military Uniform Princess, painting her as a rabid mass murderer so that everyone would side against her, only for my lies to be true! Being right when I wanted to be wrong is a new experience for me.

She's crazy. More than crazy. Who would want to destroy the world, every world? Who would want to risk her own death for that? To conquer galaxies, to take over entire universes, to enslave your enemies and to be praised for all eternity, that's what an intelligent villain should be about. I'd understand it if she was some kind of alien or demon. If fiction has taught us one thing, it's that people who aren't like us are all chaotic evil and should be put down before they kill us. But she looked human enough.

What a puzzle.

If I were a lesser woman, I'd be afraid. To be honest, losing this fantastic playground and seeing all my potential targets for conquest vanish into thin air is not the kind of prospect I'm looking forward to. Not to mention the possibility of me dying for good. Still, now I can feel more at ease. Nobody will ever realize I lied to their faces. Altair is Evil with capital 'E'. Whoever tries to excuse her, to reason with her or to side with her is a traitor to the whole multiverse. And I just need to look at Kikuchihara to know that her stupid government will be more cooperative and less stingy from now on.

Always look on the bright side of life.

00000

Someone opens the door of the room we've chosen for the meeting. Princess Tomato and Grasshopper Glasses are already here, as well as Kikuchihara, Matsubara, Nakanogane, Marine and Suruga. That dumb fop of Yatoji went to work, so there are only two people missing, the same ones that are entering right now.

" _Souta"_ , I greet him with my best "I don't give a f*** about you" face.

Despite his willingness to sacrifice himself for me, I can't still forgive him for withholding important information and meeting with Shark Girl without my consent. He'll have to do better if he wants to become my Minister of Snacks.

Followed my Kanoya, the boy approaches Princess Tomato and I with a worried face.

" _Are you fine now?"_

No, of course we aren't. I'm still in pain and my red-haired minion is in a wheelchair. But I guess that's not the real point of the question.

" _Yes"_ , Princess Tomato answers with a smile.

" _Yes"_ , I say. So deadpan.

My inexpressive passive-aggressiveness is becoming so obvious that people are starting to give me weird looks. That, or my sedatives are making me see things, like that small pink elephant dancing over Nakanogane's head.

I bow.

" _I apologize for making you worry"_ , I say.

Yes, this is the demure, politically correct Meteora everybody knows and loves. But now it's Kikuchihara the one who is glaring suspiciously at me.

" _Is it about the battle last night?"_ , she asks.

I nod. Time for my tried and tested expositions. I'd info-sump the Military Uniform Princess into oblivion if I could.

" _Previously, I said that if we could discover who created Altair we could make a lot of progress. However, it has become necessary to alter this strategy"._

From the looks of everyone, it's pretty clear they don't understand what I'm talking about.

" _What?"_ , a confused Matsubara asks.

Now it's the time for the great reveal. Again, Meteora Österreich proves to be the greatest reservoir of knowledge of all time!

" _That's…"_

" _It's because Altair's creator is already dead"_ , Souta interrupts.

WTF? What do you think you're doing, errand boy? This is my show! Shoo, shoo, go back to your background.

Too late. Everybody else is dumbstruck by Souta's words.

" _Souta?"_ , Princess Tomato mutters.

 _"I'm sorry. I knew all along"._

 _"What do you mean?"_ , Mr. Matsubara asks.

Dramatic pause. Souta looks down, then raises his head. Damn, he's getting good at this. And then he drops the bomb:

" _I knew about Altair from the beginning"_.

What? He knew and he didn't say anything? TRAITOR! I need to ask Kikuchihara if Japan has the death penalty. Oh, wait, it has! Time for some hanging.

No, no, don't look at me with those sad puppy eyes. I'm not going to fall for… Ugh, okay, at least I'll give you the chance to explain yourself.

" _The reason is that… Altair's creator… Setsuna Shimazaki is… my… really dear… friend"_ , he mutters slowly and painfully. Wow, he's taking his time. _"And I'm the one… who killed her"_.

Okay, okay, you killed someone. So edgy. Now, can we get back to my plan, please?

Wait, what is this? Flashbacks? No, no, no! This is not how you do things! To use flashbacks is to admit you suck at exposition. Tell, don't show! If you don't bore your audience with never-ending and monotonous info dumps, how will you showcase that you're more intelligent than them?

Hey! I'm talking to you, Souta! Don't start a damn flashback! Don't…!

00000

Sigh. What a boring story.

Basically, in the past Souta was the same friendless background character we know and tolerate, but back then he also drew things. He sucked at drawing, yet he was naive enough to upload those hideous monstrosities in the hopes someone would like them. Then he found this Setsuna's gallery and was amazed by her far more superior art. They chatted, they went out to an event and, sadly, he saved her from falling to her death. Imagine how many problems we could have avoided had she died there. I blame his infatuation. I can almost hear his thoughts:

"She wears glasses! I wear glasses! We're perfect for each other!"

Or something like that. With his luck, I bet she was a lesbian.

The thing is, after a time he realized that her friend was on course to become a famous artist while he would remain one of the many anonymous wannabes. He started resenting her success, and when some jealous worms started accusing her of plagiarism, he did nothing to help her. Ultimately, his cowardice stopped him. The end.

" _And… And..."_ , he adds, looking guiltier than ever, _"And watching Shimazaki get put down made me feel a little bit less lonely about being left behind. Somewhere in my mind I felt such an ugly… sense of satisfaction"_.

Oh, my, he's about to cry. What, do you think that will make me feel sorry for you? Come on! You behaved as the background character you were supposed to be. The mob says Shimazaki is amazing? Then she's amazing. The mob turns against her? You turn against her. Geez.

Gods, give me patience. At this rate, it's going to take a whole week for him to finish this damn flashback.

…

Seriously. I haven't had the chance to do my exposition routine! This is so unfair! I'm supposed to be the protagonist, aren't I?

…

Aren't I?

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

The Secret Journal of Meteora Österreich is back! I promised I'd be back by September, didn't I? Yeah, I know I'm a bit late. I wanted to wait until the end of the series to know if I needed to make changes. My greatest fear was that Meteora would be revealed, without an ounce of vagueness, to be the most altruistic goody two-shoes in fiction. But guess what? Not only it didn't happen, but it practically confirmed she's EVIL… from a certain point of view XD

So here am I, back with updates. My plan is to finish the rest of the chapters as soon as possible. No deadlines, but this story certainly won't last until 2018.

-This chapter is shorter than usual, because Meteora didn't have almost any screentime. And when she was about to info dump, Souta interrupted her. So rude! Expect it to be a trend; it seems that, in general, the more the plot advances, the less scenes Meteora has. I suspect that the creators of the series realized the problems of Meteora's overexposition in the first episodes.

-Most of you probably recognized Meteora's dream from episode 13. As for the rest, poor Meteora didn't have a lot of speaking time in episode 11.

-You know, I find it interesting that when Souta made the great reveal, they never showed Meteora's face. Who knows what kind of face she was making!

-Yep, Japan does have the death penalty, and hanging is the execution method.

See you in the next update!


	13. Niconico Strikes Back

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 12: NICONICO STRIKES BACK**

Sigh, as I suspected, Souta hasn't finished his damn flashback yet. Seriously, it felt as if he had been monologuing for a whole week. Isn't it boring when people talk and talk about themselves? They don' care if their petty miseries are interesting or not. Those people just want an audience that listens to them. So self-centered. Fortunately, I'm not like that. I never talk about my real self.

Where were we? Ah, yes, our jealous Doormat-kun was blaming himself for his beloved friend's death. You know, because he didn't say anything when she was being bullied online. "Ooooooh, look at me, I murdered someone! Well, not really, she killed herself. But that happened because I was sooooo important in her life that only I could have saved her. And I didn't, so that must mean I killed her".

As I said, self-centered.

Oh, wait, there's something more serious! It seems that Altair's creator contacted him and asked for a bit of emotional support. By message, because a phone call would be too hard, I guess (say what you want about the sorry state of my world, but at least my people talked, traded and murdered one another face to face). And what did Souta answer to her?

"' _I've never been in that position before. Don't ask me'"_ , the flashback… I mean, Souta said. _"There was no reply"_.

I suppose this is the moment when I open my eyes in utter shock and tell him: "OMG, how could yo do that! You monster! You're scum, a murderer, the cruelest person in all the world…!"

Not really. You were just a generic human being. As if you were the first person to give the cold shoulder to a person you actually didn't know very well. And that's why you'll never go beyond Minister of Snacks, Souta. If you want to be evil, you have to do it right. Forget about mediocre pettiness or shallow indifference, think bigger! Like a planet-busting death ray spell.

Gods, I do want a planet-busting death ray spell.

It seems I'm not the only one bored by Souta's backstory.

" _Well, yeah"_ , Suruga mutters without raising her head. The creator of that obnoxious bearded gunman has been drawing on her notebook since the beginning of Souta's speech and she couldn't look more uninterested if she tried.

In an attempt to be a bit more polite than his colleague (but certainly not more enthusiastic), Mr. Matsubara asks:

" _And then?"_

And then, some time after that super-meaningful exchange they had, Setsuna sent him a link to her last video. Yep, that _Altair world Étude_ that took us so long to find. He knew it from the very beginning, yet he has the gall to pretend he forgot. That he had buried everything in the furthest corner of his mind, because reasons.

" _But after this started, I remembered. That I do know her. I know Altair"_.

Yeah, right. I'm not buying it. I'm a master of logic, you see. The greatest scholar ever known. My wisdom knows no bounds! Except when it does, but that's not the point.

Let's see: on the one hand, we can accept his version and believe that the trauma and a subconscious bias made him unable to recall those events, until continuous encounters with Altair and the other Creations forced his repressed memories to appear again. On the other hand, we can suspect that he didn't say anything because he didn't want the only friends he had made in a long, long time to know how miserable he really is, and that he decided to spill the beans only after the Big Bad almost started the destruction of the world in front of him and he couldn't deny his guilt any longer.

I know which explanation I'd choose. But I've always been pretty evil-minded.

Ok, that only leaves one question: how did he know about Setsuna's death? Well, for some reason, Setsuna's mother used her daughter's mobile phone to call him and tell him about her suicide. Oh, and it seems that her real name was "Shimazaki Yuna", not Setsuna. I didn't catch on that earlier.

And what was Souta's reaction when he found out? Did he face his inner demons? Did he promise to become a better person? Did he go full nihilist and embrace the dark side? Nope, he just deleted everything he had about Altair's creator. Out of sight, out of mind.

" _I wanted to forget"_ , he confesses. _"My memories, the records… I wanted to make it all disappear. I was scared of what I did and I couldn't stand it. I ran away"_.

Oh, look at him. He's crying. Seriously, no one knows how to react. Everyone is like "huh?". Sigh, someone, say something. Otherwise, I'll be forced to perform the role of 'Holy Mother Meteora' again and I'm not sure I won't blow him to smithereens.

Mr. Matsubara sighs.

" _That sounds bad"_ , he says, scratching his head. _"Souta, if I was in your position, I might have done the same thing. However, what you did… I can't just say "don't feel so bad about it". If you were the type of person that didn't feel guilty about it at all, then I wouldn't want to talk to you"_.

Well said, Mr. Matsubara. Truly, in the end we found out about Altair on our own, but withholding that information for so long is something he should feel very guilty about. However, for now, I plan to be magnanimous. I still remember the snacks.

" _You're right, Mr. Matsubara"_ , Souta says. See? Even he agrees. _"What I did to Shimazaki was horrible"._

Wait, what? Who cares about your not-girlfriend, we were talking about your borderline treason! At least I thought we were…

" _Do you regret it?"_ , I curtly interrupt him when he starts rambling again. _"Are you determined to accept the responsibility?"_

I stare coldly at him. He must know there will be no more second chances. I almost expect him to crumble under pressure and start crying again, but after the initial shock he answers:

" _Yes"._

I close my eyes.

" _I understand"_ , I say. _"More than anything else, that is what your soul needs"_.

Yes, yes, I think we talked about this once. Guilt is a powerful motivator. It also makes you very vulnerable to manipulation.

Souta wipes his tears. I like his new expression. He looks more confident than ever.

" _I want to stop Altair"_ , he announces.

" _Of course. We must stop her"_.

I can't help but smile a bit. Doormat-kun is no more; this Souta is determined and focused on the real goal here: defeating that crazy bitch once and for all so I can become the Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse. After this little scene, I suspect that the kid won't waver again. He'll do whatever it takes, even if he has to sell his soul to the devil himself. Good, good.

He's still a high school weakling with no special talents or influence, though. But hey, he can improve his snack-serving skills while the real heroes do the real job.

Mr. Matsubara asks how we'll be able to stop Altair, and everyone looks at me. Time to shine.

" _She was saying that this world is "the land of the gods". Even if we face off against her using power that surpasses logic, the power of the gods would win"_ , I explain.

" _The power of the gods..."_ , Princess Tomato murmurs. She gazes across the room, her mind going back to past events.

Yes, we're all remembering the same scene. Selesia, about to die, was literally rebuilt and made stronger thanks to what Matsubara posted online. It was a temporary power-up, but she managed to overpower that annoying Muscle Brains. What else could we do with that power? Obviously, if they just turned me into the rightful Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse I could squash Altair like a worm, but perhaps it's too early for that. Not even that overpowered Military Uniform Princess could start a riot without the universe trying to kick her out.

No, I must go step by step and carefully create the right conditions for my ultimate ascension to godhood.

" _There is only one way"_ , I state.

But it's going to hurt.

" _Just as we found out in yesterday's battle, Altair is capable of physical attacks, and also has the ability to revise stories"_.

Everyone nods. Princess Tomato remembers how she turned her sword into flowers. And the lolicon mecha pilots points out that he had to fight against a copy of himself.

" _How many special moves does she have, anyway?"_ , Tomato asks with an annoyed face. _"That girl..."_

At that moment, Mr. Nakanogane opens his laptop.

" _About that..."_

00000

This must be a joke. Videos, lots of videos about Altair. And I'm not talking about Setsuna's original one, mirrored so many times it's appalling, but new ones. They're in a site called Niconico… or Nicovideo… or Niwavideo… or NiwaTube… or GodTube… Agh, I'm very bad with names.

Some of them are serious. Some of them are ridiculous. Some of them should be deleted and their creators buried alive in the middle of the desert. However, the important thing is that they showcase Altair's powers. No matter how dreadful or stupid, it's a whole collection of them.

 _"This isn't the video that Shimazaki Setsuna made"_ , Nakanogane stresses. _"These were all created by someone who was inspired by Shimazaki's videos. These are secondary creations of Altair"_.

 _"But Altair's creator has already passed away"_ , Kikuchihara reminds him.

Great. Now it turns out that not only was Altair a popular creation, but she has legions of fans willing to create new powers for her. How come neither the government nor the authors on our side found out about this until now? Idiots, all of them.

 _"So this is Altair's formidable power"_ , I say. _"Through the secondary creations of countless other people, she continuously updates her own powers. Someone makes a story about her, and that story is added to her as a new power. As long as the supply of stories continues, her powers will continue to expand infinitely. People continue to share secondary creations about her online, every day"_.

Because things weren't uphill enough for me, now this.

 _"In other words, it's impossible to restrain her from the outside"_ , Mr. Matsubara sums up.

I nod.

 _"However, as of now, she can't use her powers freely"_.

 _"What do you mean?"_ , Marine asks.

 _"The "restoration power" of the world is probably still large"_ , I say (and by "probably" I mean: "I made that concept up and never expected for it to be right, so let's not dwell on the details, okay?"), _"and she would be thrown out of this world if she tried to use her powers carelessly. This must be what she's worried about"_.

That begs the question: if she's thrown out, can't she just summon herself back to this world? She has the power to cross between dimensions, after all. Or perhaps she risks complete disintegration? Is she the same Altair of all these videos or just an avatar of them that lives her own life? And what does that mean for us Creations?

I don't have the slightest idea. Fortunately for me, these people don't seem bright enough to ask.

 _"So we're going to use that weakness to attack her"_ , Grasshopper Glasses, still moody after his humiliating defeat at the hands of Shark Girl, mutters.

Kikuchihara points out the main problem:

" _However, unless we have the strength needed to face her, no matter what we do..."_

 _"Why don't we attack her head-on?"_ , Suruga, still drawing, suggests. _"The collision of the worlds happened, and that caused the power of imagination to be able to affect reality. Then us creators should be able to use that power. We can make our characters stronger, and things like that"_.

Oh? Perhaps I was too hasty about considering these people too dumb to live. This woman gets what I'm trying to say. As long as she doesn't realize my true intentions, I think she might become a most useful ally.

Slowly but surely, Mr. Matsubara is getting the same idea too.

 _"If we can get the readers to sympathize, we can revise the story, and rewrite the story in real-time! But the effect is only temporary..."_

 _"Then we must make that effect last, Matsubara"_ , I order him. _"In the revision we did last night, Marine did a test illustration and Matsubara added an improvised story. We got the readers to sympathize temporarily, but that story was never released to the world. Therefore that power was displayed only at a limited level"_.

Then I add that it's just my hypothesis, just in case. You know, the 'sympathy' theory and release limit sound like a nice explanation, but again… why didn't our Selesia know nothing of the last novel? She was affected by Matsubara's tweet, but not by his last book? Ugh. Mr. Matsubara, I'm sorry to say this, but perhaps your writing skills are going downhill and your fans have chosen to disregard that novel as non-canon.

Oh, well, the government can always seize his intellectual property and give it to a more deserving writer, if the need arises.

Kikuchihara, always the apparatchik, is already making plans in her mind.

" _In other words, if we take the appropriate steps, we can maximize the effect of that power"_.

I nod.

" _We have the support of government institutions and have communication lines with the creators. We have everything"_ , I remind everyone. _"If we use these, we can create a story world for confining Altair. We can push her in there and suppress her influence on the real world. And when we maximize our own powers through revision and directly face-off against her in the story world, if this story is accepted by the viewers, then we can win"_.

And then I'll become omnipotent. But I'd better withhold that step for now.

00000

As I expected, my plan is met with glowing approval. Some authors are a bit concerned, but my fellow Creations are excited at the prospect of going to battle again. Of course, the logistics of such a plan are extremely important, as Kikuchihara says:

 _"In order for everyone to gather in the story world and face off against Altair, we need a plot and a story that allow seamless crossover of the world views from different stories"._

Oh, yeah, I suppose we do. Plot logic, narrative coherence, character development, that's what good stories are made of. Truly Serious Fiction will trump fanfiction, as it should be.

 _"If we're going to do that, then first we need to sort out the publishing rights of each of the stories, and get the publishers to work together"_ , Nakanogane intervenes.

Mr. Matsubara agrees.

 _"Yeah. In order to make a story that gets the approval of the viewers, we need to get writers like us, the editors, and the Public Relations departments to work together"_.

" _A bird cage for confining Altair"_ , I call it. _"We must create a strong cage, rapidly increase the approval of the viewers, and increase our own strength. In order to create such a situation, we need a big event. It all depends on whether we can create a high-pressure live situation. The outcome will be decided by this"_.

Violence has always been the favorite show of every civilization. So let them watch us and root for us until Altair is broken. Surely, they'll support us because we're the heroes, and their imagination will make Altair's defeat real, regardless how overpowered she is.

" _An event..."_ Kikuchihara murmurs. _"The bigger the better. We must act fast to find a venue"_.

Mr. Matsubara isn't very enthusiastic about it.

" _It's a battle to decide the fate of the world and we're going to make a show of it? It's not even funny"_.

Excuse me? Isn't your very job making a show of other people fighting to save their worlds? But Yuuya supports me.

 _"It started with a story, so we have to end it with a story too. Right?"_

I nod. Mm, interesting, he's become less annoyingly egocentric since Magane defeated him. Maybe he needed someone to bring him down a peg. But sorry, you had your chance. Even if the heart of a soon-to-be goddess can skip a beat, treating her like a vulgar girl is a serious no-no. I'll never forgive that "Metchin" nickname, Grasshopper Glasses!

Sensibly, Kikuchihara asks how much time we have left. I… really don't know. I offer them some vague generalizations, but seriously, no idea.

" _No matter how much we hurry, it's going to take at least three months"_ , Kikuchihara warns us.

Damn. Only weeks have passed and Altair almost started the destruction of the world. Can we really let her be for months until we have our bird cage ready? No, the real question is: can we really do anything else? If we look for the Military Uniform Princess and her minions now, she'll crush us again. I'm sure of it.

As infuriating as it is to leave my rival alone, we have to wait.

" _Let's set a limit of six months and start working on it"_ , I announce, much to my chagrin. _"Kikuchihara, we need your help, and the help of the government. Please, grant our request"_.

She smiles.

" _Government-initiated events never go well. Are you going to entrust me with a huge event with the destruction of the world at stake?"_

Was that supposed to be a joke? I'm not laughing. It's your job; do it.

Mr. Matsubara, a bit anxious due to the tension, asks:

 _"So we just continue our stories as before?"_

" _I want the creators to write spin-offs from the current stories. In those spin-offs, I want you to prepare for creating the cage. In the cage, several unrelated stories will be linked. I want you to write foreshadowing for that"_.

" _What about us?"_ , Nakanogane asks.

Oh, yeah, I forgot the writing for his series is already finished. We have to contact the anime company.

" _I will handle any tasks related to the companies"_ , Kikuchihara offers.

Kanoya and Yuuya are fired up. They want to fight Altair ASAP. Cute. Problem is, they're going to be effectively useless for at least six months.

" _Earning approval, making the cage appear in the gap between fiction and reality, and luring her in. It's something that only creators can do"_ , I remind them. _"When the final battle begins, everything will proceed adlib"_.

 _"That's right"_ , Princess Tomato nods. _"No one knows how this story's going to turn out"_.

Well, preferably, I expect the story to stick to the script. _Our_ script. Still, it's a fair point. We have an opportunity to write and enact the future we desire and take Altair by surprise. She won't see it coming… unless she has already achieved omniscience or has some kind of precognitive power. If that were true, we'd be screwed. But that's not going to happen.

Definitely.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

I'm back! This chapter was longer than the previous one, Meteora talked a lot. And of course, she was scheming until the very end.

-In the series, instead of "Niconico/Nicovideo", they call the video site "Niwavideo". Oh, and those who have watched Dragon Ball Super may recognize the "GodTube" reference.

-You know, when I started watching Re:Creators I noticed a subtle bias among the authors, a certain snobbish attitude against non-copyrighted material. As if being published was enough to prove that their stories were narratively superior; ironic, because I'm sure "Serious Literature" writers would hold the same biased attitude against their light novels, anime series and video games. At first, I thought it to be the usual yet annoying author bias (of course anime creators would hold their media above the competition, in and out universe), but the ending makes me suspect that it was all part of the plan… because that attitude is going to bite them in the ass with a vengeance.


	14. Creative Liberties

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 13: CREATIVE LIBERTIES  
**

Something is boiling inside me. It must be either that fifth hamburger I ate for lunch, or sheer rage after the atrocity I've witnessed.

When I watched the preview (advantages of having inside knowledge), I couldn't believe what my eyes were seeing. I've never been so humiliated. It was supposed to be a filler episode, a harmless recap to give the production crew time to breathe. However, those ungrateful fraudsters used it to make a mockery of me! Unforgivable!

Normally, I'd just blow up the studio and let another crew take their place, but there's something I'm very worried about: did they discover my secret? For not only did they turn me into a walking joke, they did it by showcasing me as an arrogant and double-faced manipulator, who only sees her companions as foolish pawns, who dreams of being worshiped by the masses, and who has an almost pathological hate against the Military Uniform Princess. So, basically, a spot-on depiction.

This is troublesome. Was it a coincidence or do they know something about me that must be hidden? I want answers; their eventual execution can wait for now.

That's why I am here, at Troyca's headquarters in Nerima City, to talk with the imbeciles who dared to mock a future goddess.

I walk in unopposed. Everyone here knows that without my genius and my connections, this project wouldn't exist: an anime that details my efforts to stop Altair and save the world, a propaganda machine devoted to sing my praises. Ah, I love mass media! Nothing like a good story to twist reality and increase my glory and fame!

But… There's always a 'but', isn't there? These people aren't my slaves, unfortunately. They can still make changes. "Artistic liberties", they call them. I prefer the term 'heresies' better.

"Meteora!", a voice calls my name. "What a surprise! What are you doing here?"

The exhausted-looking man I have in front of me is the most triumphant example of what I've just said. Hiroe Rei, the writer of the anime. You know, like Nakanogane was for _Infinite Divine Machine Mono Magia._ There's also the director, Aoki Ei, who helps him from time to time. I'd have liked Miyazaki or Shinkai to take the helm but, alas, they weren't available. Sigh.

"You know why I'm here", I answer coldly.

Mr. Hiroe blinks, dumbfounded. His confusion angers me. After all, this isn't the first time he's taken liberties with my story. Could you believe that I handed him a carefully detailed plot for the whole series, only for him to turn it into a summary of just 250,000 words?

"You need to understand, Ms. Österreich. It's necessary to convince the producers", he said back then. "Your original script was… Too detailed? Beautifully detailed, of course, but the higher-ups want to tone the exposition down".

"What's the problem with exposition?"

"Nothing! Nothing at all! But you know how the anime industry works… I myself had to suffer the same process with _Black Lagoon_. But don't worry, I'll make sure that your creative vision is respected".

Liar. His "Naked" summary is but a watered-down shadow of my original text, and then I found out that the director and the other heretics butchered that one too to turn the story into a generic shonen. If I had been in charge, the series would have taken fifty one-hour episodes at the very least, with half of that time devoted to the necessary exposition scenes. It would have been glorious.

In Mr. Hiroe's defense, he's not brain-dead, so after a long minute of staring at him, he realizes his sin.

"Oh! You didn't like the recap episode?"

I raise my eyebrow.

"Isn't the answer obvious?", I ask.

"I dunno. Sometimes, it's difficult to tell with you, Meteora. If you don't mind me saying so, being a bit more expressive would be..."

"Stop. I'm not here to discuss my range of facial expressions, but the utter derailment of my character in the recap episode", I tell him flatly. "Why did you people think that making me a callous and self-absorbed sorceress was a good idea? That wasn't in the script! Not even in your Naked version!"

Instead of bowing down and begging for forgiveness, Hiroe Rei starts laughing.

"Ah, that! We got the idea from a piece of fanfiction".

I frown.

"Fanfiction, you said?"

"Yes. It's called _The Secret Journal of Meteora Österreich_. One of my assistants found it after surfing and searching foreign fan sites".

"Is it good?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"That piece of fanfiction you mentioned", I clarify. "Is it any good?"

"Well, if I have to give my honest opinion… It's fantastic! One of the best stories I've ever read. It's marvelous concepts, its quick-witted style, its clever dialogues, its profound characterization, all of it combines to create a wonderful narrative that will be studied for centuries as one of the pinnacles of human literature. I'd dare to say that the name of its author will be forever remembered in the same way we recall the likes of Murasaki, Shakespeare and Cervantes".

That certainly picks my interest. My eyes are wide open.

"Really?"

"Nah, I'm kidding", Hiroe laughs. "It's not awful, but that's it. Its approach isn't unique either; we've seen similar concepts coming up from time to time in Japanese sites too. Still, I must say that the idea of the caring Meteora Österreich being a villain who secretly plots against the heroes was very funny, and we wanted to pay a little homage to it".

He snickers, but is quick to recompose himself.

"I mean no disrespect, of course. We admire you for what you've done for this world, Meteora".

I nod, but I cross my arms. So it was that. In hindsight, I should have expected it. Nevertheless, their eagerness to derail my public character and give credence to that fanfiction is troubling. And the consequences can be even more disturbing.

"And you didn't think of asking me about it?", I glare at him. "I don't like other people sullying my reputation".

"It was a joke!", Hiroe defends himself. "Something to make the recap episode more amenable. Everyone agreed it was going to be played for laughs, nothing else. A harmless parody".

"Harmless? What if that joke starts affecting my character?"

"It's fanfiction", he insists, as if that excused everything.

I sigh.

"Mr. Hiroe, I understand that you and Troyca's people are just some of the writers and creators summoned by the government, and didn't know much about our real struggles until now, but Altair is fanfiction too. You know how it goes: a person adapts a copyrighted idea because it's fun, other people imitate it, and before you realize it the derivative character is trying to commit omnicide".

Honestly, once I take over the multiverse, I'll ban any non-copyrighted material. Creativity is dangerous.

Mr. Hiroe is taken aback.

"That… That doesn't happen very often".

"But it can happen", I point out. "Remember it the next time you try to add ideas of your own to my story".

He stiffens like a young recruit in front of his sergeant.

"Yes, Meteora, of course, Meteora! It won't happen again, I promise".

"Good. I'll leave now. Keep up the good work".

As I exit the building, I can't help smirking, a broad evil smile painted on my face… Okay, when I say "broad smile", I mean that the corner of my lips was twitched a bit (I'm beginning to feel that Mr. Hiroe was right and that I might need to train my facial gestures). I came to this place fearing the worst, my secret exposed in a ploy to undermine me, but I can rest easy now. Those fools aren't aware of my real intentions and will keep doing my bidding without realizing the truth, since they believe they're honoring the heroes who have sacrificed so much to protect this world from Altair.

As for _The Secret Journal of Meteora Österreich_ and its outrageous claims about my humble person… Ha, ha.

"Everything is proceeding as I have foreseen", I mutter to myself.

Now, yes, this is a proper evil smile! Wait, no, no, it's a grimace of pain. I think I have a stomachache. Too much junk food these days. Damn.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

I know, I know, I'm very late, but here comes the next chapter. A strange chapter, because episode 13 was also a strange episode, and for a long time I didn't know how to face it in fanfiction. Personally, I consider that episode 13 is a canon story of _The Secret Journal of Meteora Österreich_ , not just of _Re:Creators_ , which means I couldn't just copy-paste it in a lazy attempt to fill the blank. Instead, we have this. Next chapter we'll go back to the original programme.

-Meteora walking into Troyca Studio to discuss about an anime based on her adventures? Looks pretty filler-y, but those who know how the plot unfolds will realize that it may be more canon than it seems.

-Hiroe Rei and Aoki Ei are indeed the authors of the Re:Creators series. The former is famous for his _Black Lagoon_ series, whereas the latter has directed _Fate/Zero_ and , among other series.

- _Re:Creators Naked_ is a 250,000 thousand-word story written by Hiroe Rei as the basis for the anime's script. It's discussed in some comic strips of the same name made by the people behind the anime. They themselves joke about it being full of detailed exposition. "Do you think Magane talks too much in the series? Well, she talks 50% more in the original story!". In this chapter, the joke is, of course, that Naked is supposed to be a summary of what Meteora had written beforehand XD

By the way, the next chapter is already in the works, so expect an update sooner than this one.


	15. All Your Anime Are Belong To Us

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 14: ALL YOUR ANIME ARE BELONG TO US**

A new plan is born. The wheels are in motion. Vengeance shall be mine.

The first step, as always, is to convince the powers that be that my plan… Excuse me, "our" plan is the most important thing in the universe right now. The government will be easily convinced. Those politicians are worried sick that they won't get elected again if there are no elections. You know, because the world exploded or something like that. And they've been up to date since they authorized the so-called _"_ _Special Situations Countermeasures Council"_ _, so they don't need further explanations._

However, the government alone is useless. This is a battlefield of souls, hearts and fetishes. We need the mass media following suit.

A meeting is arranged in the Cabinet Government Building Hall 4. Executives of the most important entertainment companies in Japan are here, from animation studios to publishers and broadcasters. Kikuchihara takes the lead:

" _This is a project of the highest priority for the Japanese government. Please, lend your cooperation"_.

They listen to her attentively, while Selesia and I watch the scene and wait our turn. At this point, it'll be necessary for more people to know the truth. That is, that a fictional character is trying to destroy the universe, and she has the power to achieve it. I really hope they don't laugh at her face. It would be a pity if I needed to blast one of those men with my magic spells to prove our point.

While Kikuchihara is talking, Souta gives us a sheepish smile. He seems to be in higher spirits than before, but meetings like this one make him uneasy.

…

Now that I think about it, what is he doing here? Who invited him? I know it wasn't me. Was it Kikuchihara? Or perhaps Selesia? Or did he just tag along? Seriously, shouldn't he be at school? No wait, it's dark. No school. What about his family, then? Don't they care that their child is never at home when he's supposed to? Suddenly, family life at Mizushino's looks suspicious.

Oh, well, who cares. As long as he keeps quiet and doesn't spoil the meeting, I'll allow him to stay. After all, this is just the beginning.

00000

Several days later, we visit the International Stadium Yokohama, also known as the Nissan Stadium. With a seating capacity of 72,327 seats, it is the largest sports venue in Japan. It's been used for FIFA World Cup matches, and the authorities want to host several Olympic events here too. However, we're going to use it for a different kind of competition.

" _Are we having a party in this huge place?"_ , Yuuya says out loud. Seems that Grasshopper Glasses has recovered a bit of his sense of humor after that psycho Magane stole his precious little samurai ghost.

He jokes, but he's right in a way. For the general public, it's going to be a party. For us, it's going to be a death match.

As much as it pains me to say it, Altair is more powerful than us. Far more powerful. If we decided to face her head on, she would squash us like bugs. Those silly videos give her so many ridiculous and overpowered abilities that even all of us together don't stand a chance against her. Stupid Internet. I suggested taking all those videos down, but the government refused. Something about "freedom of speech", "not panicking the population" and a bunch of technical excuses about hosting, servers and providers. Sigh.

A weaker person would have given up at this point. But I'm Meteora Österreich, the future Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse, and I know the key to victory.

The other day, when the Military Uniform Princess and her lackeys were about to kill us all, Mr. Matsubara showed us that the rewriting is possible (still thinking about names for the city I will build in his honor for this service; Takashigrad, perhaps, or maybe Matsubaraburg?). For the changes to take place, however, the new story must be published. And that's where the government and the media companies enter the battle.

" _First, we will unite our stories into one and expand our story through all types of media, including an anime, novel and manga"_ , I explain to my fellow creations.

In fact, at this very moment, while Grasshopper Glasses, Princess Tomato, Lolicon Pilot and I are admiring the stadium, Kikuchihara should be in another meeting. The previous one was with the owners and bosses of the companies; now it's with writers and animators, the true soldiers of this war.

Our battle plan requires a complex set-up. We'll tell the public that the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry will hold a joint event to promote comics, novels, video games and anime, which will take place as a huge crossover, binding our stories. Creators will pen spin-offs to justify our participation (and our new brand power-ups), and a special anime will be made, called _"Border World Coliseum"._ A series of 90-minute special episodes, because there's never too much time for climax will be a battle against Altair, with the fate of the world as the prize. I wanted to call it the _"Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny"_ , but they said that name was taken, so the final name will be _"Elimination Chamber Festival"_.

I liked my name better.

" _We're going to get Altair involved in the story and get her to come here"_ , Selesia states, but Kanoya remains skeptical.

" _Is it really going to work?"_

" _The story will be fabricated so that everything will be displayed on the huge TV screen that will be installed in this stadium"_ , I point out. _"Then our fate will be determined by the audience"_.

Ah, yes, the audience. We need them to accept the crossover and the power-ups. If they start saying "deus ex machina", "asspull" or "THEY RUINED IT 4EVER!", we'll have a problem. This is the reason I'm not simply asking them to give me god-level powers. It would be so easy to defeat Altair in that case! And then take control of the world, of course. But no, we have to play by the rules.

A sensible person may ask: wouldn't it be simpler to rewrite Altair so that she's weaker than us? If only things were so easy! Unfortunately, that teenage emo author of hers failed at living, and contrary to me, no company has the rights to her character. There's no official owner, ergo everyone can create their own version of Altair and it will be perfectly canon.

Moral of the story: public domain and copyleft are evil.

So we'll use the media to showcase how awesome we and our new powers are, and we'll lure Altair into a pocket universe, a closed space, a "bird cage", if you must, where we'll be able to gang up on her to our hearts' content. At best, we'll crush Altair. At worst, we'll force her to abuse her powers until reality collapses around her and kicks her out. Had we been stronger during our last battle, that could have been her fate.

It's perfect. Or it would be, if we had the means to gauge the audience's reaction. I don''t like gambling, nor do I trust anyone's gut feelings. Not even mine. I wish I had a way to scientifically measure these things, with actual numbers. Mm…

Grasshopper Glasses is saying something again and interrupts my train of thought:

" _...like fun. Right, Metchin?"_

I'll kill him.

" _Stop calling me that"_.

He stops, but how long will it last? I thought his defeat at Magane's hands would have taught him some manners; alas, a leopard doesn't change its spots.

By now, Kikuchihara's meeting should be over. I wonder if everything's alright. It's not every day you tell a bunch of manga and anime makers: "help us create this story or we'll all die". Will she be up to the task or will the peerless Meteora Österreich have to save the situation once more?

00000

No saving needed. Kikuchihara fulfilled her mission with flying colours. Indeed, from what I heard, when those whiners complained about overwork, she said: "I'm telling everyone to die".

I'll keep that line in mind for the future. So classy.

The government's influence is notorious, and we managed to start our campaign with an announcement on January 14th, as scheduled. The studio Mr. Nakanogane works for, TAC Products, is in charge of the anime. When the director threatened to quit if he wasn't given10 top-class producers and screenwriters, he had to eat his words because he got them right away.

This is how things should always be done. Free thinking, private entrepreneurship, open markets and creative liberties might be good and nice in times of peace, when children can play shopkeeper and believe that their pieces of paper, shiny rocks and other kinds of virtual money are worth something. But when the safety of the country and the world is at stake, kids must step aside and adults (like me) must take the helm. Some people may call it "heavy-handed", or even "tyrannical". I prefer to call it "shut up and keep working".

However, not every part of the production can be forced in the same way (yet). Because of the very nature of this conflict, Mr. Nakanogane, Mr. Matsubara, Ms. Marine, Mr. Yatoji and Ms. Suruga have to work together on the main story. After all, our stories are on the line. We'd add Alicetaria' creator too, but for all we know, Muscle Brains might have killed him already.

Their cooperation is… lacking, to put it politely. Matsubara and Marine are a perfect team, and they get on well with Nakanogane. But Matsubara and Yatoji clash time and again, and Suruga is a natural loner. The first spin-off, a short story set in Princess Tomato's universe that will kickstart the crossover, is due tomorrow, yet the group hasn't agreed on the storyline for the anime.

Agh. At this rate, I'll have to do something. Nakanogane has been named Lead Screenwriter, but that isn't enough. He lacks the guts to flog his more unruly colleagues.

A pity Ms. Suruga prefers to keep to herself. I think she would make a fine strategist. Doesn't speak a lot, but she's already thinking of ideas and drawing sketches for her part in the story. She showed me a rough draft of her plan to neutralize her creation, Blitz Talker. It was cruel and cold-hearted, and it relied on emotional blackmail and ruthless oppression. I loved it.

"Meteora!", Kikuchihara suddenly calls me. "We've found something".

Thank the gods. Some action, at last.

00000

Two magnetic field fluctuations in a row. Suspicious. There was a previous one while we were in hospital. Obviously, we weren't in any shape to do anything about it. If new summoned characters have appeared, we must reach them before Altair does it. I won't allow them to be lied to and manipulated by an evil overlord who isn't me.

Still, I fear the worst. Our power-ups aren't ready. Although Altair has been kind enough not to keep attacking us (a major mistake; you have to finish your defeated enemies before they have time to recover), she could change her mind in any moment, or her minions may not appreciate our intrusion this time. Worst of all, we have to divide our forces to search both areas.

To everyone's surprise, I ask that punk of Yuuya to come with me.

Princess Tomato raises her eyebrow. 'Really?', I can see her ask in silence. Don't worry, my precious red-haired magic knight; among this pathetic rabble, you're definitely my favorite. As they say, your first minion is always special. And that's why I don't want her with me; if I happen to come across Altair, I'll need a meat-shield to sacrifice so I can escape. The decision is between Kanoya and Yuuya. The Lolicon Pilot is the only one who can drive his humongous mecha, while Grasshopper Glasses has called me 'Metchin' again, so my choice is clear.

We walk, we observe, we ask. No clue at all. Whoever was summoned, nobody has seen or heard of them.

My phone rings. It's Princess Tomato. Their search haven't been successful either.

" _Did you track down the magnetic field fluctuation?"_ , she asks me in a hopeful tone.

" _Too bad, we lost it"_ , I admit.

I can almost hear her mental sigh.

" _Why did two occur at the same time?"_

Honestly? I haven't got the slightest idea. But I can't say that.

" _It's probably an effect of the weakening of the world's rationality"_ , I spout. _"I think the amount of blah, blah, blah..."_

What a bunch of nonsense. Quickly, change the subject before she notices it. Remember that Princess Tomato has the annoying tendency to ask or point out the things I don't want anyone to think about.

" _Also, although it isn't a clue, there's something that caught my attention"_ , I say.

I mean, apart from the people looking at us. The high school girls are especially grating; they stare at Yuuya, then at me, and they laugh. I don't understand why.

" _One of the eyewitnesses of a previous Creation that we lost reported seeing a robot, a huge power driver. There is a high probability that the Creation transported to this world is from a robot or science fiction series"._

Really, we could have talked about this at a different moment, and whatever happened with the previous creation doesn't have anything to do with our current search. I almost expect Princess Tomato to point it out when I hear Kanoya's voice at the other end of the line:

" _Selesia. I found her"._

Yes! Finally, a stroke of luck. I'm looking forward to meeting our soon-to-be new member. Altair probably managed to get a giant robot, so what did we get? A fearless warrior, like Princess Tomato and Muscle Brains? A naive kid armed with powerful weapons, like Magical Slowpoke and Lolicon Pilot? A grizzled veteran like Blitz and Grasshopper Glasses? A skilled villain like Magane? Or a powerful magician like myself?

I can't wait to meet her!

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

I said I would update soon, and here it is, the new chapter. However, don't expect such a quickly update next time. In fact, the chapter was basically finished several days ago but I still needed time to check it again. Real life eats my free time, and there are still 8 more chapters before the end. I know I wanted to finish this before 2018, but I don't know if I'll manage to do so before New Year. As I said back in the day, no promises about deadlines with this fic, but I'll try to do my best.

Those who take a closer look at what Suruga's drawing will notice that she had her plan for Blitz in mind long before the Elimination Chamber Festival was near. It's even more outstanding when it happens at the same time the other authors are bickering about what the best course of action is


	16. The Pornstar

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 15: THE PORNSTAR**

This is it? The Military Uniform Princess adds a giant robot and who knows what else to her ranks, and this is what I get? A porn actress?

The universe must hate me.

The Creation that Selesia and Kanoya found was some pink-haired girl called Hoshikawa Hikayu, one of the main heroines in the video game _The Milky Way of a Starry Sky_. You may ask "what kind of video game are we talking about?" Action? RPG? Shooter? Strategy? No, nothing as fancy as that. It's a visual novel. More specifically, an erotic dating simulator, where a blatant self-insert protagonist has the chance to woo 2D girls and have sex with them, the kind of high school fantasy the players never managed to fulfill in life. And this Hikayu seems to be the most popular girl of the game by a large margin.

Not that she's enjoying the attention, mind you.

Our disappointment is so evident that no one tries to hide it. Sitting in the Royal Guest Room, she doesn't raise her head while the rest of us look at her.

 _"I can't believe it..."_ , Mr. Matsubara mutters awkwardly. _"You're that character from that dating sim game"_.

 _"That used to be an X-rated game..."_ , a sheepish Mr. Nakanogane adds.

Wow, very subtle.

Marine scolds him, but the harm is already done: Hoshikawa starts crying again. Gods, my eardrums… Do gamers find girls like her appealing? Really? A cutesy and cacophonic crybaby? Sigh. However, I can understand her distress.

 _"From her point of view, she must feel like her secret diary was exposed to the entire world"_ , I say. I can only imagine how bad I'd feel if someone did the same with this, my secret journal. I'd be sad, and angry, and I'd probably kill a lot of people. _"It's like an accident. I extend my sympathies"_.

If I were her, though, I'd be more upset about finding out that I was never "the One" for my beloved, but just another target to be unlocked with the right answers. Hurrah for true love!

Hoshikawa keeps crying, while we discuss the implications of her appearing here. As Matsubara points out, the "popularity" theory is reinforced. Personally, I think that if it were so clear, many other characters would have appeared in our place. Where are the characters from films and novels? And isn't it strange that all of us come from media that has been published not long ago? Mm.

In any case, Selesia points out the main cause of disappointment:

 _"Until now, all the characters that appeared here were Creations with special abilities for battle, so I thought there was some kind of rule like that."_

No such luck, I'm afraid. A pity; as soon as I saw her, I was reminded of Magical Slowpoke Mamika and hoped for another naive magical girl that I could manipulate. Alas, this is what we get. Uninterested, Mr. Yatoji leaves the room, more concerned about finishing his spin-off than continuing the charade. Not that I can blame him.

Mr. Nakanogane, always the gentleman, tries to defend the pink-haired pornstar. She's not completely useless, he argues.

 _"Her special ability is showing her panties and seducing men"_.

He gets smacked for his words, of course.

Still, a honey trap? That could be useful, but I doubt Altair would fall for that. And Hoshikawa herself is pretty adamant that she's not that kind of girl. A shame, really. Incorruptible pureness and childlike innocence don't make for a good seductress.

 _"But what is she going to do?"_ , Kanoya asks.

Grasshopper Glasses says something stupid. I don't pay attention to him.

 _"In any case, we must contact her Creator… No, since it's a video game, I mean, the company that created her"_ , I correct myself.

No one seems bothered by my slip, despite the fact that I played the drama queen when I found out that the producer of AVALKEN was dead. No need to point the obvious: a game belongs to a company, not to a single person. Unless Altair buys the shares, she won't be able to take control of Hoshikawa's character.

(Note to myself: see if I can buy those shares instead).

 _"I'll arrange it"_ , Kikuchihara replies. _"However, I'm still curious about the whereabouts of the other Creation..."_

 _"...and the Creation we lost before"_ , I finish for her. Truly, missing two possible allies or enemies in a row is an inexcusable failure.

Kikuchihara confirms the news about the giant robot. The first one we missed. As for the other one, we don't have a clue.

 _"Two Creations"_ , I mutter. _"We have to assume that one of them, the one with a huge robot, teamed up with Altair. We will continue our search"._

With some luck, the other missing Creation might not have been contacted by Altair yet. But I don't hold my breath. Kanoya, annoyingly sharp, voices the same concern:

 _"I bet that character is on the enemy's side too"_.

 _"If we can discover the identity of that character early on, then we can include that character in our story line. This would be advantageous for us"_ , I point out.

If we can't convince them to join us, we'll make sure their downfall is carefully scripted. When the fate of the world (and more important, my ascension to godhood) is at stake, there can only be "with us or against us".

Mr. Nakanogane raises his hand and points at Hoshikawa.

 _"About that storyline… This girl is a Creation too, right? Considering the impact, don't we have to include her in the Chamber Festival too?"_

Good question, and one I don't have an answer for. True enough, as a Creation it would be better if she was included in the plot. No loose ends! However, is she going to be of any use? What will she do, cry the enemy into submission?

Now that I think about it, helpless civilians do have a part in epic stories. They die so that the heroes can find their motivation to defeat the enemy. The more tragic, the better. Hoshikawa would be perfect in that role! She's a young, cute and innocent girl, trapped in a war she doesn't understand. If Altair or one of her minions kill her on screen, her fans and other gullible viewers would ask for revenge against the Military Uniform Princess. An old trick, but an effective one.

Before I have the chance to explain my proposal, though, a soldier enters the room.

 _"General Director Kikuchihara!"_

 _"Any new developments?"_

 _"The Oji office notified us that they have taken one person into custody under the "Special Disaster 105 Measure"._

 _"Who? A Creation?"_

No, not a Creation, but a Creator: Takarada Naoya, the author of _Alicetaria of the Scarlet_. The creator of Muscle Brains.

Wait, didn't that brute knight kidnap him? I thought he would be dead by now. What's happening here?

00000

This is unbelievable! The Metropolitan Police Department has confirmed what the soldier told us: that tanned, tired-looking man is indeed the writer Takarada Naoya. Last time anyone saw him was in November, when Alicetaria kidnapped him. Now his alone in a room, reading manga like crazy.

He's been interrogated, of course. According to his testimony, he was taken to a cell in some place far away from the city, although he couldn't pinpoint where it was exactly. It was run-down and shabby, and the cell was wet and dirty. Muscle Brains was rough with him, but he wasn't tortured. From time to time he caught a glimpse of Altair and her loyal Blitz, but if there were more people there, he didn't know.

They wanted him to work and gave him material to keep writing. Alicetaria wanted a new story for her, something that would make her able to solve all the problems in his world. But it didn't matter what he wrote, nothing changed. Muscle Brains was getting angrier and angrier, and several times Mr. Takarada feared for his life. To the point that, one day, the knight took him out of his cell and brought him with her in her flying horse, threatening to throw him over the mountains if he didn't answer her questions.

But he must have answered correctly, because instead of murdering him, Muscle Brains let him go. According to him, his Creation has become disillusioned with Altair and could eventually turn against her.

"She needs our help", he says.

This is suspicious. To be honest, Muscle Brains seemed distraught after our last battle, and the dates match. But did she have a change of heart? Or is this a trap? A ploy to infiltrate our ranks and find out about our plans?

It doesn't help that, according to his story, it took many days for him to be found by the police. He says that he was afraid, that he didn't know if he was being watched by Alicetaria, and decided to stay low. After all, last time he tried to ask the police for help, they didn't believe him at first, and then they were unable to stop Muscle Brains when she came to kidnap him.

Still suspicious. However, if he's saying the truth, he could become an asset for the Elimination Chamber Festival.

"We'll keep him here for a while", Kikuchihara says. "We'll also do a background check. Perhaps we can find the place where Altair is hiding".

I nod, although I doubt that we'll be so lucky. For now, let's make sure our pieces are the correct ones.

00000

Several days later, I'm back at the Nissan Stadium to perform a little experiment in fron of Kikuchihara and some other government officials.

 _"With the spell of Genesis and Renatus, I hereby call upon wisdom. Become the sign that illuminates thought. Illuminate the mechanism and come forth"_.

The wording of my spells is making less and less sense. But the gibberish works. A huge machine appears around me, with me as its pillar, and with a gesture a complex circle of blue light is summoned. The whole looks is a bit too sci-fi for my taste, but there's a reason for that.

 _"Do you mean that with this we can now confirm the output of the "acceptance"?"_ , Kikuchihara asks with a mix of hope and disbelief in her voice.

 _"Yes, this spell resonates with the audience when they accept the causality while they watch various stories. This spell will allow us to instantly visualize their level of acceptance. Based on the fact that I was able to use this spell, which wasn't originally in my Magic Book, I think that Matsubara's revisions are successful"_.

Ah, yes, Mr. Matsubara has done me yet another great service. I'll name two cities in his honor, then.

Remember the time when I was devastated by that stupid producer's death? It feels so silly now. There are other authors that can take his place. Of course, as much as I wanted the company to create a whole new video game in my honor, it wasn't feasible due to the current deadlines. However, with their blessing, I've become a protagonist in the spin-offs and crossovers for the _Elimination Chamber Festival_. And when the anime _Border World Coliseum_ starts, I'll become even more powerful.

Obviously, it isn't as easy as telling the authors "make me omnipotent in your story" and that's it. The audience won't accept (yet) that the best NPC in AVALKEN has become their new supreme being, so baby steps are needed. I tried to be moderate with my petitions, but at first Matsubara looked at me as if I was crazy.

"You want a spell that does WHAT? How will I explain to the readers that you have some kind of magic to see if audiences accept the causality of a story?", he asked. Or if he didn't ask, his glare alone said it.

Despite his misgivings, it was easy to convince him that it was necessary for the success of our endeavor. And he complied. I don't know how he managed to do it and, frankly, I don't care. What matters is that, since this very moment, we have a reliable method of measuring the audience's reaction. If they accept our plot, we can keep adding weapons to our arsenal in the middle of the fight without accusations of "deus ex machina". This is a delicate balance we have to maintain. A false move and we're screwed.

 _"Now that we have this, we'll know when our attempts to induce acceptance aren't going well, and we can modify our direction and increase our chances of success"_.

Not to mention that the machine is eco-friendly. The results of the survey directly power the spell, instead of forcing magic on the environment to gather the data.

 _"It's more accurate to say that it's like a pressure gauge for a boiler"_ , I say.

And this is just the beginning. Having confirmed that Matsubara's rewrites can give me new powers, it's time to broaden my magic arsenal. Altair will be very surprised. And Blitz… Mwuahahahaha, I can't wait to see his face.

The government officials leave, visibly reassured by the results of the experiment. Kikuchihara and I take our time, and she tells me about the latest developments. After being cleared of any suspicion, Takarada will be granted permission to join our merry band of followers, but we'll keep watch on him just in case.

 _"By the way..."_ , Kikuchihara says. _"It's Mizushino. I heard he's going to participate in making the story line too. Matsubara notified me"_.

Oh. That was certainly surprising. It seems Souta is taking seriously my warning not to disappoint me again. Since he's a feeble high school kid, absolutely useless in a fight, he might have thought that helping the authors could be his chance to redeem himself.

 _"That's good"_ , I say softly. It's nice when your minions take the initiative to improve themselves.

Intriguingly, a shadow of doubt crosses Kikuchihara's face. Her next words are far more cautious.

 _"And… The story that Mizuhino proposed..."_

00000

 _"I see"_ , I mutter after Kikuchihara describes the whole plot to me.

So that was Souta's idea. Bold. Simplistic. Idealistic. A blatant author's tract with an idealized version of the events and the values that are at stake. Useless, most likely.

 _"Matsubara said it was interesting, so he wants to include that too"_ , Kikuchihara adds tactfully, careful not to give her own opinion on the matter.

I'm not nearly as tactful as her.

 _"To put it simply, I think that would be difficult"_ , I reply bluntly.

 _"Is that because Mizushino isn't skilled enough yet?"_

I shake my head.

 _"No, that's not it"_ , I say, and I'm being 100% truthful here. Honestly, it's not as if our other creators are literary geniuses. _"It's a problem related to the structure. That idea has a fatal contradiction. We probably won't be able to get acceptance with that"_.

Well, if people knew all the facts, they could be made to sympathize with that idea… but it also risks them sympathizing with our main enemy. We can't have that.

 _"It's too bad"_ , I sigh while gazing at the sunset, _"but now it's the time for us to wish for a miracle"_.

00000

Things are going well. Takarada has just signed up and he's already working hard on changes to make Alicetaria more powerful in the hopes that she'll use that power to fight Altair. Let's see if that works. If not, I'll insist on including a kill-switch, like a curse that will instantly murder her if she turns against us. You can never be sure with that Muscle Brains.

But Takarada is not our newest member. The writer of The Milky Way of a Starry Sky happened to be an old friend of Nakanogane. He works at Hyper Tension Co. Ltd., and he's already been issued a pass. He has an appointment to be introduced at the next meeting so he can start working on…

…

Wait, can you repeat that? He's here? Right now? Gods, I hate surprise meetings. Ok, ok, I'll go. But if I miss my lunch, I'll revolt.

00000

Onishi Nishio. What a disturbing man. He's loud and obnoxious, and doesn't seem to know his place. And he's ugly. Like, seriously, have you seen his teeth?

Still, I can't help being curious about his first contact with his Creation. All of us have assembled in the Royal Guest Room again. Hoshikawa has the seat of honor, while Onishi is right beside her. She avoids his gaze, whereas the man is looking at her like a hungry predator in front of his prey.

" _N-nice to meet you"_ , says the pink-haired porn actress, with as much enthusiasm as a prisoner on her way to the gallows. _"Uh, I'm Hoshikawa Hikayu"_.

Onishi, on the other hand, can't contain his emotions.

" _Hikayu! It's me!"_ , he shouts.

Cute, he sounds like a father reuniting with his long-lost daughter. Then he jumps and tries to hug her.

" _Marry me, please!"_

Ok, that doesn't sound like fatherly love.

Hoshikawa tries to push him away, to no avail. Kikuchihara joins the fray, chastising the depraved author while grabbing him from behind.

" _Stop, Onishi! She's your Creation! Now that she's here, she's an individual with human rights that must be respected!"_

It doesn't looks as if he's paying attention. Finally, Nakanogane manages to drag him away.

" _Isn't she perfect?"_ , Onishi says out loud, blushing and gesticulating. _"A photo! Let's take a photo together!"_

I look at Princess Tomato to exchange impressions, but my fearless minion has stepped forward. I'm no fighter, but her killing intent is obvious. She hits Onishi right on the top of his head, then punches him and sends him to the floor. Nakanogane is uncomfortable and tries to placate her with gestures, but not even he would dare to oppose Selesia Whatever-her-surname-is in the middle of her righteous fury.

" _You're like her parent"_ , she admonishes Onishi. _"You should be more considerate!"_

For once, Onishi is speechless. He looks at Princess Tomato, then at me, then back to Princess Tomato. It seems he hadn't realized we were in the same room until now because he was focused on Hoshikawa. He clasps his hands, as if he was praying to the god of sexual deviants.

" _What is this place? I feel like I'm in a dream! An endless Gandhara, filled with my wives!"_

Oh, for the love of… of myself. His delusions are pathetic. Not like my plan to become the Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse, of course. My goal is sensible, feasible and good for society.

" _This is it! They say that dreams come true, no matter what they are! Marry me!"_

He goes right to Princess Tomato. Sigh, I should have expected. No, I'm not disappointed that such a pervert deemed my big-bosomed minion more attractive than me. Whoever suggests the contrary will be declared heretic and die in a bonfire.

Not flattered in the slightest, Selesia kicks him in the face. Rather than backing down, he smiles and starts rubbing his face against her shoe, while Nakanogane does his best to stop him.

" _It looks like there are all kinds of gods, Mirokuji bro"_ , an unfazed Kanoya points out.

" _He's no good"_ , Grasshopper Glasses agrees with a tired expression. _"Maybe I should have gone with Altair instead"._

Normally, I wouldn't tolerate treasonous chitchat, but the chaos in front of me prevents me from interfering. And truth be told, people like this sorry excuse of a man make me think from time to time that Altair may not be wrong, and that this universe could do better with a bit of genocide.

Kikuchihara slams her hand on the table. Everyone stops moving. Dead silence.

" _Mr. Onishi"_ , she says in an ice-cold tone.

" _Yes?"_

" _This isn't a hand-shaking event with an idol group or a cosplay event"._

" _Yes"._

" _This is a meeting for discussing how to increase Hoshikawa's powers"._

" _Yes"._

Amazing. She managed to domesticate him in a matter of seconds. I need to remember her words for a future 'How To Train Your Slave' manual.

00000

Ok, things have calmed down. There's hot drinks for everyone (and snacks, delicious snacks). And Onishi has been placed in the furthest seat from Hoshikawa. Perhaps we should ask a judge for a restraining order, just to be sure. In any case, it's time for us to discuss serious matters.

Mr. Onishi has been informed about our current predicament, and I explain our main disadvantage:

" _In the character description, Hoshikawa is a normal high school girl. It would be difficult to gain acceptance from the audience if we gave her powers"._

To my surprise, her creator dismisses my words instantly.

" _Huh? Why?"_

All the women in the room (including myself) glare at him. The men also look startled. Onishi doesn't mind and keeps talking.

" _It's easy. No problem, no problem"._

" _Easy?"_ , an exasperated Matsubara repeats. He must feel that Onishi has just said that all his hard work and effort were for naught. Or that he's a much better writer than him. _"You..."_

Mr. Onishi ignores him and drinks his coffee. Loudly.

" _What do you plan to do, specifically?"_ , Nakanogane asks. He still trusts his friend, but his patience is also wearing thin.

With a confident smile, Onishi proclaims:

" _A fan disk!"_

I don't know what a 'fan disk' is, but knowing that man, I'm sure it must be something depraved.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

A small Christmas gift from me. Happy holidays to those who celebrate them. I'll try to update again before New Year, but no promises!

-Back in episode 5, when Meteora found out the producer of her game was dead, it was a BIG DEAL. It didn't matter that such a big game would have involved many more people (for all we know, the producer didn't write her lines nor design her character), and that the game itself belongs to a company. Fastforward to episode 15, and suddenly Meteora is perfectly aware that the creator of a game's character is a studio, not a single person, and no one lampshades it. Of course, _this_ Meteora knows and milked it for cheap drama, but canon Meteora doesn't have that excuse… unless she was secretly evil! (or the writing was inconsistent, but let's be Watsonian about it).

-When planning the last chapters, I noticed a logic hole in Re:Creators' timeline: supposedly, Alicetaria freed her creator not long after Selesia and Meteora were hospitalized. At least several days (or even weeks) pass in meetings and plans for the mega crossover, yet he isn't discovered until this moment in the story. What was he doing in the meantime?

-Pay attention to Meteora's words when she describes her machine. She equals "acceptance of the story" to "acceptance of causality". Although a sensible assumption, not always fans enjoy a certain story because the causality makes sense. This will be an important point in the future.


	17. Hot Springs Episode

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 16: HOT SPRINGS EPISODE**

A lot of things have happened since that porn actress joined my jolly band of followers. Like a ruthless dictator, Kikuchihara has forced the Creators to meet every deadline, improving the plot, building the setting and increasing our powers. As for us, the Creations, we weren't idle either, but we've managed to experience some adventures and misadventures.

We went to a traditional festival, where I had the chance to wear one of those fabled yukatas, as well as buy delicious food in the stalls. Princess Tomato and I went shopping with Marine, and then Creations and Creators had fun in an amusement park. Our time in an anime convention wasn't so enjoyable, though, because Grasshopper Glasses almost killed a fat guy who dressed up as his arch-nemesis, Hakua Sho. What a susceptible guy.

He should learn from me. When summer started and we went to the beach, Princess Tomato used her water pistol on me. Did I kill her in response? No, I merely threw a giant wave at her with a spell. Moderation is a virtue.

Oh, and it seems that the intelligence agencies of some countries tried to kidnap us, and several of them died, and there was diplomatic turmoil, and Kikuchihara told us that an atomic apocalypse was avoided in the last minute.

A pity, I wanted to see the effects of one of those nuclear bombs first-hand.

I could write about these events for ages, but who cares? I don't have time for trifle anecdotes like a festival or a nuclear strike. My plan is the only thing that matters. I'm sure my brilliant and intelligent readers will agree with me (if they don't agree, it means they weren't brilliant or intelligent in the first place).

00000

Since things are going well, the government has decided to invite us to a very famous _onsen_ in Tokyo, in recognition of our efforts. They made a complete reservation only for us.

(When I say "us", I mean the Creations and our Creators, plus Souta, our team-mascot. The other artists, writers, producers, civil servants and errand boys that are working in the project weren't invited, because they're just background NPCs and their feelings don't matter).

I've arrived first. Truly, it's a very interesting place. It has baths, hot springs, saunas, and even a theme park based on Japan's feudal past. They also offer massages, I must try one of them. But for now, I'll try the water first.

Aaaaaah… This is bliss. Warm and calm, not like the sea. I could stay here all day, and I don't mean it metaphorically: in my game, no one took damage from being underwater, so it's impossible for me to die of asphyxiation. Mistakes of the gods be praised! Of course, once I take over the multiverse, I'll make sure to correct that. Flooding an entire world is an easy way to deal with rebels, but only if they drown in the process.

Suddenly, I notice noises and movement. Princess Tomato, the Pornstar, Marine, and Suruga have arrived. For some reason, they don't notice that I'm here. Is the steam so thick? A very discriminating steam, I must add; it only covers some specific parts of their bodies. You know, it's in times like this when I wonder if we're in another fictional universe, because that convenience is too convenient.

Of course, then I realize that it's a very stupid thing to think. This is the real world. It must be. Otherwise, my plan would be for naught, and surely the gods won't be so cruel to do that to me.

…

Come on! Can't they see me? It's not as if the water is dirty! I can see them, and even hear them. Hoshikawa is troubled because of that pervert author of hers, Onishi, and Selesia is incapable of cheering her up. As usual, it's up to me to placate (or increase) everyone's fears.

My head raises from the water.

" _It'll be fine. Trust me"_ , I say.

Marine jumps in shock.

" _When did you get here? You should have said something!"_

And you should have noticed I was here all along, you short-sighted woman.

" _I wanted to surprise you. It's important to have surprises in life"_ , I explain. Like that Onishi. I thought that Hoshikawa's creator was a useless jerk, but he's merely a jerk. _"I read the plot. The plot twist is classic Ohnishi. I'm impressed"_.

My praise is honest. If everything works as intended, Hoshikawa, the weak and ineffective crybaby, will be turned into a killing machine. If only we could do that with Souta and the other useless and boring humans!

" _But his personality has some problems"_ , Selesia points out, still unconvinced.

" _In this industry, personality and ability are not related"_ , I retort.

That said, if Ohnishi keeps behaving like that, it won't be long before he's arrested by the police. Fortunately, the government is on our side right now, so they'll turn a blind eye to his misdemeanors until he outlives his usefulness. Isn't the justice system great?

Like the naive actress she is, Hoshikawa buys the whole "endure his sexual harassment for the greater good" talk and shuts up.

Suruga, visibly bothered by the heat, stands up.

"It's no good. I'm getting out now".

" _Suruga!"_ , I call to her. _"I read your part too, the part that's going to be released right before the festival. Are you really okay with the way it is?"_

It matters to me because I play a big part in it, although not as big as Suruga's. She's going to valiantly put her life on the line while I remain safe (as it should be). It isn't strange for minions to have second thoughts in this kind of situations.

Fortunately, Suruga's words put my mind at ease:

" _Didn't you guys say that the Creator understands the characters? I wouldn't have it any other way"_.

Even if that means stabbing your children in the back and then twisting the knife, we both think. Spoken like a true author.

00000

Now we're in an open-door spring. The Japanese love their baths, don't they? It's very relaxing. If I could, I'd stay in this place for a million years.

Selesia is also having a good time, although she's quite more pessimistic about it.

" _This may be the last time I'm able to enjoy this smell"._

Way to ruin the mood. Ok, ok, we know, the world may end soon if Altair wins, or you may die in the final battle. Can't you be more positive about this? Geez. Let's focus on the important things, like this… like this smell.

" _It's very fragrant"_ , I admit. I wasn't used to finding pleasure in these small details until I came to this world. _"The seasons and the wind, the dirt and even the light, all have a unique smell"_.

" _That's true"_ , Selesia agrees. _"The smell of the tides and the smell of the trees. The smell of this stream and the smell of the sunlight"_.

" _I never imagined a multi-layered world would have so much abundance"._

And it shall be all mine in the end!

Puzzled by our conversation, Marine tries to smell the fragrances in the air.

" _I never really thought about it before, but now that you mention it, I think you're right"._

Of course I'm right. I'm Meteora Österreich.

" _I wonder if she… If Altair has ever felt that this world is beautiful"_ , Selesia asks out loud.

Sympathy for the enemy, Princess Tomato? Still, can't say that the idea of the Military Uniform Princess relaxing in a bathhouse isn't funny. Not a chance in hell, though. She's too resentful and single-minded for that.

" _Altair has been subject to many constraints from the beginning, all for a purpose. She hasn't been given the mental freedom to realize how abundant this world is. She has no spare time to reflect on the beauty of this world. It's unfortunate, but that's how it is"._

On the other hand, if she realized the beauty of this world, she may end up wanting to conquer it instead of destroying it. I mean, if I were in her place, I'd take over the planet first and then use its resources to find the online bullies who hounded her Creator and make their lives a living hell. That's the civilized way.

" _Regardless of Altair, we must make our next move. And we definitely made our moves using the time and pieces that were given to us. Even so..."_

" _It can't be helped"_ , Selesia tries to cheer me up. _"The Creations that got away are like points added onto Altair's score. We have no choice but forget about them"._

Ugh. As always, my red-haired minion seems to say out loud what my mind is thinking about. Truthfully, yes, not being able to find those Creations before Altair, despite having the government's resources at our disposal, was a grave mistake. Our previous successes were in no small part due to sheer luck, not personal effort. We were overconfident. I was overconfident. And I don't like to be reminded of that.

I get out of the water.

" _Anyway"_ , I mumble, trying to change the subject, _"there is no doubt that the situation has proceeded to the final stage. From here on, all we can do is pray for a miracle from heaven. Yes, heaven… The gods are the ones who will watch over us and decide in the end"._

Ah, yes, the "horrific gods of pleasure", as Altair called them. Will the audience side with our carefully crafted, richly sponsored and big-name-signed story? Or will they side with the joke character and her revenge fantasy? Only time will tell.

In the meantime, let's party like tomorrow is the end of the world.

Literally.

00000

" _We've finally reached the 8_ _th_ _stage"_ , Kikuchihara announces. _"In celebration of all our good work until now, cheers!"_

All of us raise our glasses and answer:

" _Cheers!"_

We drink, and eat, and talk, and eat, and eat, and eat… Especially me, I love the food here. O'd praise it if I wasn't busy stuffing my mouth with even more food.

What the authors, especially the male ones, praise is not the food, but Kikuchihara. It reaches ridiculous levels: "Oh, Kikuchihara, you're so amazing!", "Everything went according to schedule thanks to you", "Your progress is god-level", "You're sexy and I'm horny, please have my babies..."

Ok, perhaps they didn't say the last one, but they were thinking it. Pathetic. I'm the one who is (or will be) "god-level"! Why aren't they praising me?

Unfortunately for them, it seems Kikuchihara is the kind of person that gets angry when she gets drunk. Five minutes later, she's already tearing them a new one:

" _You guys are a lot of trouble to deal with. You're always making excuses, like 'I don't have enough time' or 'I don't have any ideas'. Even a preschooler could make excuses like that. Do you understand? Are you really adults?"_

Karma is a bitch.

The men kneel down, ashamed, while the rest of my companions don't know where to look. Not me, though; my attention is reserved for the food. Delicious. Tastes like procastination.

00000

Ok, now that the drunken Kikuchihara has passed, it's my time to give the speech to the troops.

"The day of glory has come! The enemy is powerful, but with the power of our enslaved corps of authors and a deceived audience, we shall cheat the laws of the universe so that you, my minions, can punch that smug face of hers into oblivion. It will be dangerous, and many of you will die in the process, but that's a risk I'm willing to take. Do not falter! For if you do, only extinction awaits. Maybe you fear yourselves to be weak. You're right: you're weak. But it's not only brute strength that will win this fight. We have plans, distractions, traitors, a secret weapon. What we need is a chance to win the hearts of the audience. That's your role: if you can't win, buy us time. Know that your eventual sacrifices will be the cornerstone in my ascension to godhood. Already my power is growing, greater than ever, able to bend reality to my will. Once this ugly business is over, all the realms of the multiverse shall tremble before the might of Meteora Österreich. By right of supremacy, I shall become the Goddess-Empress of Everything! All hail me!"

…

Actually, that wasn't my real speech. Oh, yeah, I did include things about how my magic _"has been made more powerful than ever before"_ and how my power is now _"able to interfere with the laws of this world and the connected story worlds"_ , but being too honest is dangerous. I did mention that Muscle Brains could become our Trojan horse, and, most important of all, yes, our "secret weapon".

(Doesn't it feel mysterious when everyone calls it "secret weapon" instead of calling her by her actual name? I insisted on it. It makes us look cooler, like spies in a spy movie).

" _We were gathered here by fate. It is our destiny, a destiny that was created by the infinite abyss beyond the end of the world of the gods. However, it was not by chance. We were gathered here for this reason. That's what I believe"._

I extend my hand.

" _The people of this world would do this, right?"_

At first, they're confused. I can't blame them: taking part in a team ritual is not something in-character for me. But as Kikuchihara said before, managing motivation is the key to success. I need them motivated, even if that means having to feel their sweaty, dirty hands on mine.

Soon enough, everyone has gathered around me. Grasshopper Glasses even grabbed the unconscious Kikuchihara so she could join the fun. Smiles of confidence. Good.

" _Let's save the world"_ , I say with a determined look.

Yes, let's save the world... so that I can keep it all for myself.

00000

The day has come. July 23.

All the pieces are on the board. The revised novels and manga have been a commercial success. The anime series created to introduce the main event tops the charts every week. The merchandising is selling like hot cakes (but, for some inexplicable reason, Selesia's dolls are more popular than mine). The Elimination Chamber Festival can proceed to the last stage.

Right now, trains full of gullible citizens are coming to the Nissan Stadium. We expect up to 140,000 people, and that's without counting the millions that will watch the broadcast. Their feelings will power up the Birdcage to trap Altair, and thanks to my brand new Evaluation Tracer, we'll know if our tropes are working as intended.

Yes, yes, everything is good. But I can't help feeling a bit anxious.

It may be a modicum of guilt, since I spent the last months doing basically nothing while the rest worked hard to fulfill my ambition. I'm worried I may be out of shape. However, since I don't have a fighting role, it's not really that important. That 'honor' is for my loyal minions.

It may be my magnificent mind telling me that there are loose ends. We still don't know which two mysterious Creations joined Altair, so we don't have a plan prepared for them. We also ignore Magane's whereabouts. The annoying Shark Girl disappeared after our last encounter. If she's clever, she'll take a plane to get away from here. I mean, her superpower is basically lying. What can she do, really?

The police and the Self Defense Forces are also in position, while the audience is getting ready for the show. All according to plan.

So, why am I nervous?

Oh, the show is going to start. Look at them, shouting like monkeys, moving their light sticks like mindless zombies, blinded by the fireworks. Brains as simple as the inner workings of a rattle.

" _This is it. This is the source of the creation of this world. This is the discharge circuit created by synapses in the human brain"_ , I mutter to myself while walking to my place in the Evaluation Tracer machine.

I sneer at those simple souls. And yet, is there a tingle of envy in my thoughts?

" _It's beautiful"_ , I admit. Thankfully, no one hears it.

"Are you ready, Meteora?", Kikuchihara asks me. This is the control room. Most Creators are here, as well as soldiers, technicians and civil servants. From this place, we can check every camera, every drone, every signal that we can gather. It's my fortress.

And now it's my turn to start the battle.

 _"The border between Nigredo and Albedo turns to ash. Celebrations of the Grand Grimoire lead the resonance of the stars. The border between the occult and daybreak shall bring light"_ , I chant.

The ffect is almost immediate: Grimoires 61 to 89 light-up, and more follow. A complex magic array, impossible to see by the naked human eye, appears on the city. This is the foundation of the Birdcage of Altair. No mistakes or errors so far.

 _"Everything is proceeding according to the plot"_ , Kikuchihara informs me.

I nod.

" _Next, we will lay the bait"_ , I announce. _"Altair tried to transport Creations to this world, but even she cannot predict how the Creations from the collided worlds will appear. We will use this as our bait"_.

Oh, yes, I'm sure Altair will be very interested when someone else uses the power of Holopsicon to bring new toys to this world. Because now she isn't the only one who can use it, mwahahaha.

" _We also shall run along the yoke of Holopsicon. On the day of the Heptameron dust shall return to the giant tree..."_

A beep in the computer.

" _A magnetic field disturbance has been detected. N35, E139 at the Harumi Central Avenue intersection. No error"_ , a soldier says.

Excellent. After confirming that the area has been successfully evacuated, Kikuchihara contacts Selesia and the rest of the strike team. They're all in position and in good spirits.

Now, universe, witness the power of Meteora Österreich!

 _"With the incantation of the Holopsicon and wisdom, I hereby declare: Come forth, Vogelchevalier!"_

YES! Selesia's robot materializes out of thin air. Personally, I'd have preferred another character to add to the roster, or some kind of fantastic nuke, but Princess Tomato kept pestering me about her stupid machine, so I decided to be generous. I still think her previous flaming power-up would be better in a fight, though.

In any case, this proves it: I managed to hijack Holopsicon's power. I'm so great. Well, I suppose it was also due to Mr. Matsubara's writing it in the crossover, but who cares about the details?

The trap is set. Now it's Altair's turn to take the bait.

…

Any time now.

…

Seriously, please, come. The easiest way to nullify all our efforts would be for Altair and her troupe not to appear today and make us look like fools in front of thousands, no, millions of people. But she won't do that, will she? That would be foul play. And what kind of villain would take the easy route when she can do it the hard way? An intelligent one. Or a lazy one. Or both.

…

I'm starting to suspect we've made a grave mistake.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

I'm back! The hiatus has been long, but my studies are finally over (for now). The results have been… disappointing, to put it very lightly, but on the bright side I shall endeavor to finish my incomplete projects as soon as I can. I have NEVER abandoned an incomplete fanfic and I won't start now, no matter how long it takes, so rest assured that this won't be a lone update.

-The Oedo Onsen Monogatari bathhouse we see in the episode is a real place in Tokyo.

-Seriously, the girls were all in the pool, yet no one noticed Meteora until she surfaced? Talk about failing a spot check.


	18. All According to Plan

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 17: ALL ACCORDING TO PLAN**

" _Bogey Altair and bogey Alicetaria confirmed!"_ , a soldier shouts. _"One additional unidentified Creation and one vehicle"_.

A collective sigh of relief can be heard in the room. I manage to keep my cool, but deep inside I can't help but laugh at Altair's stupidity.

Seriously, for a moment I thought the plan was going to be a huge disaster. We've been playing reruns of previous episodes for a while now, and there are already people complaining to the staff and asking for a refund. An hour longer and we could have kissed goodbye to our Birdcage and our carefully crafted asspull power-ups. Thankfully, Altair took the bait.

" _They're coming from the sky! The situation is out in the open"_ , Kikuchihara states the obvious. _"Please start. Open the cage. Stop airing the ending of yesterday's story and switch the monitor to the live video. Don't forget to pass it through the conversion filter"_.

Thanks to the invaluable help of the U.S. Department of Reconnaissance, we have excellent images of their approach. And with the extra cameras on the ground, no angle will escape us.

Surprised about the Americans? Oh, yes, this world's superpower was surprisingly amenable once they heard of the risks involved in the operation. It also helped that I took certain "liberties" in my description of Altair when I talked to their ambassador.

"What", he muttered speechless when he heard my words. "Altair is a Communist Nazi Islamic terrorist? How can that be?"

"Think about it, oh herald. Don't you see her clothes? They were influenced by ancient German uniforms, which means she's a Nazi. She's powered-up by open source and copyleft, and has declared war on media conglomerates and copyrighted IP, which means she's a Communist. And she's going to kill herself by killing everyone around her, which means she's an Islamic terrorist. She's evil incarnate".

Well, perhaps it didn't go _exactly_ like that, but in the end they realized that my plan was the only thing standing between them and the end of Hollywood, Coca-Cola, McDonald's and the rest of their beloved gods of greed. They've been very helpful ever since. Minus that part about starting a nuclear war with China. Or was it Russia? They all sound the same to me.

However, even with American help, all this effort would have been for naught if not for the conversion filter that turns live-action images into something akin to animation and CGI.

At the beginning of production, some authors suggested using us, Creations, as actors for a live-action series instead of relying on animation and having to invent a whole new technology able to translate real-life images into animated ones almost instantly. It would have been easier and cheaper, it would have made deadlines less pressing and it would have prepared the audience for our presence in the field. However, that would have meant lots of work for us. As in taking orders, repeating scenes time and again, suffering poor scripts and idiotic directors… Naturally, I convinced everyone that it was better to take the long, complicated and risky route. Some may say that I put my laziness above the interests of the whole world. And they're right. But I already suffered a thankless job in my original video game; I'd rather see the world die than going through that again.

" _Altair has been captured within the barrier"_ , I announce. She's gotten so close that I can feel her presence inside the magic field. _"Close the lock. Start the chant"_.

00000

Down in the city, far from the stadium, my minions await Alatir's arrival with serious faces. Can't blame them, they're probably going to die.

The Military Uniform Princess descends like a fallen angel, smiling confidently (can't wait to erase that smug grin of hers once and for all). She even bows to my cannon fodder, greets them politely and seems unfazed by Selesia's taunts. Ha! She probably thinks she has the control of the situation. How wrong she is.

As usual, Altair tries to bore our people with her repetitive religious sermons about how evil the gods are (wait, wouldn't that make it an anti-religious sermon? Nevermind).

" _Blah, blah, blah, abominable gods, blah, blah, blah, watching us, blah, blah, blah, everything is about to be complete, blah, blah, blah..."_

She's clearly obsessed about the issue. It's as if the gods killed her mother or something. Well, technically they did, but still!

Thankfully, Altair shuts up and starts trying to kill my minions. What a relief.

She's not alone in her endeavor, of course. Alicetaria, aka Muscle Brains, charges in her ridiculous flying horse against Kanoya's giant robot. You'd think it an uneven match, and you'd be right: the robot is clearly at a disadvantage. What a pathetic performance. I'd be angry at Kanoya (if he's supposed to be the ace pilot of his universe, the standard must be pretty low), but I'm actually angrier at Alicetaria's Creator, Mr. Takarada. I exchange a meaningful look with him. He promised us that Muscle Brains was going to betray Altair, and we increased her powers because of his assurance. So far, it seems the actual traitor was him.

Oh, well. I never told him that I had a kill-switch installed in her new powers. If Muscle Brains tries to use them in battle, I just need to chant a spell to make her gauntlet explode and kill her. Better safe than sorry.

Suddenly, concealed by a cloud of dust and debris, Alicetaria gets close to Kanoya and whispers:

" _Young boy, wait until the time is right. You understand, right?"_

What.

Now it's Mr. Takarada who gives me a meaningful look. He nods. Cheeky, but it's clear that he was right. Well, let it be known that Meteora Österreich recognizes her mistakes. When the battle is won and I take over the multiverse, I'll give him a park or something.

By the way, Altair has brought more allies. A blonde guy who looks like a street punk just appeared and the stadium has erupted in high-pitched squees. Mr. Yatoji quickly informs us that he's another of his Creations: Hakua Sho, the hero of Exclusive Underground and Yuuya's former friend and sworn enemy. He has an interesting power, being able to summon a ghost knight that can move across pieces of glass. Our Grasshopper Glasses is having a hard time. Poor him. It's karma for calling me "Metchin".

(Go, Hakua Sho! Teach him a lesson!).

The good news are that the fangirls in the audience are enjoying the show. From what I've heard, they're yaoi fanatics that love to ship those two punks together, and some of them have sent dead threats to Mr. Yatoji if he dares to pair them up with girls instead. Cute. Even Marine is giddy. Didn't think she was a fan. Suruga, always the sensible woman, retires without saying a word. I respect her decision, especially because she has a more important role to fulfill.

A pity I can't keep watching. I have a job to do.

" _Inimitable key that will never rot through the depths of time, you shall surpass even the dark river of Styx. Time freezes in your dominion, never-ending change shall turn to nothingness and then become infinite"_ , I chant.

The countdown begins. I'm not being metaphorical; it's a real countdown, with numbers on the screen. It looks very professional.

This is the most delicate moment of the operation. If Altair notices that something is off, she may escape and we won't be able to trap her in our Birdcage. My minions must keep her busy until the numbers reach zero.

Fortunately, they do. It's time for my powers to shine.

" _Gates of prison, the truth behind my key has been revealed here. Close oneself!"_

Sigh, I think this is a new low for the wording of my spells. Nevertheless, it's pretty effective: lightning bolts pour from my Magic Book and the Birdcage is set. The soldiers rush to check the data and, yes, everything is correct. We've just created a pocket dimension in that part of the city. Now we can launch all of our weapons against Altair without fear. Reality won't collapse inside, no matter what egregious abilities we use.

Including mine, of course. Guess who improved her weapon-summoning spells?

00000

Distracted by Selesia, Altair is slow to notice the threat.

" _Mm?"_

BOOM! KABOOM! RATATATATATATAT!

Fly, my pretty fighter jets! Shoot, my shiny new tanks! With a few words, now I can create an army out of nothing. I don't have to steal the weapons, because my improved spells just need to copy the models and, ¡voilá!, I can make as many items as I want. The personnel is also unnecessary; my vehicles drive themselves. And I can do all of this from the safety of our headquarters. I've become a one-woman army.

Tremble, world! This spell alone would allow me to win a war of attrition against any non-nuclear power. Seems crazy that they gave it to an alien from another world. Fools!

But the greatest fool is Altair herself. She's trapped and now she isn't the only one who has OP powers. Mwahahahaha, what a moron! She should have stayed at home, but she's fallen into our perfect trap. Now we don't have to worry about anything. We can boil her, burn her, do whatever we want. All is going according to plan.

Well, almost. Although it wasn't totally unexpected, my barrage didn't manage to pierce Altair's defenses. And she's… She's smiling?

" _Just as I thought. It's a barrier"_ , she says, apparently more interested than annoyed. _"A fictional city isolated from reality. Right, Meteora?"_

Shit, she realized it!

" _You have been trying to stop me from warping this world and releasing the yoke that binds it. However, now you have abandoned that strategy. Fools. Did you think that I was underestimating you? You, the characters that were charged with the most important missions in each of your stories?"_

Fire, fire again! Burn her, make her explode, riddle her with bullets! Now that she knows the truth, we have to kill her as fast as we can. Otherwise, sooner or later she'll find a way to break the spell, or she might stall for time until the effects of the Birdcage run out. We can't let that happen.

Damn, not even a scratch. And worse, she's still monologuing!

" _The reason you have embarked on a large scale attack must be because you have succeeded in pinning down my sphere of influence. Breaking the gun is a difficult task, even for me"_ , she says in a condescending tone.

Seriously, we know our own plan, stop explaining it to us! What, do you think you have an audience? Actually, yes, she has an audience, but it's not as if she knows it, right? Right? RIGHT?

With a gesture, Altair sends her flying swords and destroys my entire army in a matter of seconds, still explaining things and gloating about how much she knows about my techniques. Dammit, this must be what intellectually inferior people must feel when dealing with my expositions.

I hate her so much right now. And she's still talking!

" _So, what are you going to do next? At least you've been successful in buying time. 'Now we don't have to worry about anything. We can boil her, burn her, do whatever we want'. Isn't that what you're thinking? You have made a big mistake, oh wise Meteora"._

Fuck. Can she read my mind too? That's exactly what I thought twelve paragraphs ago!

My loyal Princess Tomato tries to avenge that mockery, but it's in vain. Physical attacks don't work, normal spells don't work. She's getting frustrated.

" _It won't work unless we attack her concept itself"_ , I warn my red-haired minion through the communicator. She needs something better. The ultimate move that Matsubara, her Creator, gave her.

Ionion Aphoria.

The concept is deceptively simple: infinite gates. The target is trapped between them, in an infinite labyrinth where they will be lost for all eternity. It's the ultimate logic bomb. You'd need to be either God or Chuck Norris to escape it.

Selesia doesn't waste a second and summons the infinite gates. Altair, unaware of the danger, stays still and looks at them with curiosity. Then, the trap closes and she's devoured by a beam of light. Spectacular. When the beam disappears, Altair is no more. We've won.

It was rather anticlimactic. But who cares? With Altair trapped in a maze with no end, it's time for us to…

" _Did you really think that this would be the grand finale?"_

Sigh. I forgot. Of course she would escape. She's the Japanese Chuck Norris. A stupid meme that doesn't know when to die.

To make things worse, she's appeared in the very cabin of Selesia's robot. Princess Tomato is at her mercy.

" _Wherever there's a gate, there's an exit, Selesia. Did you really think I wouldn't be able to point out a single exit within an infinite space?"_ , Altair gloats.

" _If you really could, you would have already escaped from this Birdcage!"_

" _Unfortunately, this is a custom-made prison Meteora crafted by hand. As I am now, I don't have enough power to do that."_

Ha! Ok, the situation may be dire, but I can't help feeling proud. Even that cursed Military Uniform Princess has to recognize the superiority of my craft.

But wait! Why did she say "as I am now"?

" _I would love to kill you right here, but we need acceptance. You know that, right? Even if I were to force you to drop out right now, the viewers watching us would think it's boring. That wouldn't be good, right?"_

Oh, gods. Oh, gods. Oh, gods. No, it can't be, no, no, no.

" _She understands everything..."_ , I mutter, horrified.

This is a disaster. She knows the mechanism behind acceptance, how we are using the audience to justify our power-ups. Theoretically, Altair could do the same too. If her list of videos is any indication, she has thousands of potential abilities. As long as the viewers accept them, she'll be able to use them without any of her previous limitations.

We're screwed.

Unless… Ah! It seems another prey is approaching. Perhaps he will be able to tip the scales. At this moment, we need all the firepower that we can get, no matter the sacrifices.

Welcome home, Blitz.

00000

Let me tell you the Gospel of Blitz. Once upon a time, there was an old detective living in a wretched universe of criminals and strange technologies. Despite the decadence and bleakness that surrounded him, he was still content, because he had a young but promising business partner and a sweet innocent daughter. Life was, if not good, at least acceptable.

Then his Creator said: "Let's show the readers that my story is dark and edgy". And so, the cute girl was turned into a power battery for an unholy machine horror (very painful!) and her father had no choice but to kill her to end her suffering (so tragic!).

Blitz would have cursed the gods, but he couldn't, because it wasn't in the script.

Then, one day, a devil with the appearance of a mutated mop came to him surrounded by a blue light. Altair was her name. She told him that the gods did indeed exist, and that they had killed his daughter because they enjoyed his suffering. Whereas others despair after knowing the truth or dream of an impossible reset, Blitz decided that he wanted revenge. Revenge against the cruel deity that had made his life unbearable, and revenge against the mindless masses that supported her. Altair offered them both. His path was clear.

It was a path that led him to the locker room of a certain stadium where his Creator was waiting.

" _You make me feel sick"_ , he says after seeing Suruga. _"A woman like you is the god of my world? I'd rather pray to a pile of cow dung"_.

Oh, Blitz, if only you knew! Sure, she's pretty lacking as a deity, but she's quite intelligent for a mortal.

After all, this is a trap that she devised and you've just taken the bait.

Blitz doesn't know we're monitoring the entire conversation. As they speak, JSDF commandos are getting to their position. Ms. Suruga needs to stall for time and it will be our victory. Sadly, it can be difficult, especially since that woman is far too honest for her own good. She probably thinks that Blitz, as her Creation, will detect any bullshit she tries to give him.

" _This might not be important at all to you, a god, but there is one thing even the tiniest piece of dust would never be able to forgive"_ , Blitz says somberly, pointing his gun at Suruga. _"You planned and wrote everything. You're responsible for everything. That's why I want to ask you: why did my daughter have to die like that?"_

Ms. Suruga smirks. She has only one answer for him:

" _Because it made the story more interesting"_.

BAM! Unsurprisingly, she was shot. See what I meant about being too honest for her own good?

Thankfully for our plan, Suruga was right: Blitz didn't use any of his OP magic bullets. He could have turned her into mincemeat if so he wished. But time is running out. She tries to keep him listening by making him understand that the life of an author is not easy. Even if she's now successful, she went through hard times and even now she still feels threatened by younger artists like Marine. Poor her!

Actually, no, I'm pretty sure that Blitz had it far worse than you. And he isn't impressed either.

" _I can't understand why you get so obsessed over something so childish. You must be mad"_ , Blitz says contemptuously. _"Well, I'm going to blow your head off now. Then, I'm going to find my enemies and kill them all. And then I'm going to stir up a huge commotion here and lend my help to my friends, who are fighting in isolation somewhere far from here. What do you think? Doesn't that sound pretty fun, even to you, a god?"_

Ah, so the old detective with the impressive beard knows what we're doing too. And he's right: with all our combatants in the Birdcage, it would be too easy for him to cause a massacre and dispel the barrier that surrounds Altair. Did they plan it from the very beginning? Clever, very clever.

Sadly for him, I'm cleverer.

An explosion. Suddenly, before Blitz can pull the trigger, the JSDF squad surrounds him. It's mostly for show, though; I'm pretty sure that the old man could kill them all easily. But hey, at least they can work as meatshields for Ms. Suruga. The writer complains that they've arrived late and, frankly, I'd rather see them die than losing Suruga. She's done me a great service. My secret anti-Blitz weapon is ready for deployment.

" _Dad?"_

Blitz freezes. A girl that shouldn't be there is walking towards him.

" _Erina?"_

Yes, Blitz, that's your daughter. Resurrected and as fit as a butcher's dog. Isn't she cute? Look at those puppy dog eyes. The uniform she got is hideous, though.

Ms. Suruga is gloating now. "I'm your god" and whatnot.

However, she shouldn't be so cheeky. Yes, she wrote (part of) the plot, but those were just words. To bring back the dead, and for it to be accepted by the audience, you need a magician of the highest level. Someone so powerful and authoritative that the viewers would accept the deal. Someone who says "Sci-fi is dead, long live fantasy!" and the laws of the universe obey. Who could that person be?

…

It was a rhetorical question. It was me, of course. Thanks to Suruga, now I have power over life and death.

And so the first chapter of the Gospel of Blitz ends. "Bearded he came from his Creator's pen and bearded will he return there. The Creator took away, and Meteora has given back. Blessed be the name of Meteora".

You can bow now.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

I promised I would update soon, didn't I? With some luck, I'll update again in a couple of weeks.

Although it will be explained better in the next chapter, yes, it was true both here and in the original series: Meteora was the one behind Erina's resurrection. The details, as usual, weren't really explained, so that left yet another logic hole in the plot. But more of that in the next chapter. Stay tuned!


	19. Top Ten Anime Betrayals

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 18: TOP TEN ANIME BETRAYALS**

Unsurprisingly, Blitz is in denial. Of course, it's not every day that a goddess performs a miracle. That Jesus guy? According to that sleep-inducing religious book, he resurrected a nondescript male adult specimen. Me? I resurrected a cute little girl, and I have an army to prove it. Literally. Sadly, Blitz can't comprehend the truth that lies in front of him. He's even pointing his gun at his daughter, but he's trembling. Seriously, I hope he doesn't pull the trigger by accident; the cute kid would die and that would be very inconvenient. Hostages are useless if they're dead.

" _No way… It can't be… No way!"_ , the old detective mumbles incoherently. _"She died. She already died! Right before my eyes!"_

Erina, his daughter, stares at him confused. Not the family reunion she was expecting, definitely. Suruga, always the cruel Creator, tries to laugh at him, but sadly she's still recovering from the bullet's impact. Her bulletproof vest kept her alive, but it must hurt. Like, a lot. Nevertheless, while the JSDF soldiers attend her and shield her from Blitz, she finds the energy to gloat.

(Truly an example for every agent of evil out there; I should be taking notes).

" _It was hard bringing her back"_ , Suruga admits. _"In the world of Code Babylon that I wrote there were no magicians. But in another world..."_

Blitz gasps. Now he's beginning to understand.

This is my favorite part.

" _Yes. In Meteora's world, she is a magician of the highest rank"_ , Suruga says. Hear, hear! Gods, it's so good to be praised by others. _"It's possible to mesh different stories together and have them make sense. We wrote the plot and linked your world with Meteora's world. We remade the dimension gate and brought Erina back to life after she got her head blown off"_.

" _You can do that?"_

Actually, Blitz, the question should be if _I_ can do that. Yes, I can. You're welcome.

" _But there was one hurdle. One problem we couldn't avoid: acceptance"_ , Suruga continues.

Oh, yes, that was infuriating. It would be so easy for everyone just to give me powers so I can use them at leisure! But noooooo, it has to make "narrative sense", the audience "must like it", "suspension of disbelief" this, "Rotten Tomatoes" that… As I said, infuriating.

Thankfully, when I'm around, the audience can't help but love me. So they accepted our ass-pull, as it should be.

" _The story is selling really well"_ , Suruga adds rather gratuitously.

Yeah, yeah, you're a successful author now. Do you want a cookie?

Blitz is in doubt, so Erina takes her chance to disarm him by using a tried and tested method: the loli hug. It can melt grizzly old men's hearts and turn them into a crying puddle. Blitz may be a hardboiled detective, but he isn't invulnerable to this advanced method of emotional manipulation.

" _Erina!"_ , he weeps, releasing his gun and embracing his daughter. _"Sorry. Papa shot you... I shot you"_.

" _No. I'm the one who wished for someone to end it. I knew you would make my wish come true. I was happy"._

You know a girl must have seen a lot of crap when she's able to say those things with a smile on her face. No wonder Blitz wanted to open a new hole in his Creator's skull.

" _What are you saying?"_ , the sorrowful detective asks his daughter. _"I couldn't save you. I should have saved you no matter what. I failed as a father"_.

" _That's not true. I love you. I never thought I'd be able to say 'I love you' to you again. I'm really glad, papa"_.

They embrace more tightly.

In the control room, I can notice that several people are crying or about to cry. It's such an emotional moment for father and daughter. I, however, am looking at the clock. Yes, this is very nice and whatnot, and the audience is loving it (we're broadcasting it for the whole world, mind you), but time is running out. The longer this drags out, the more chances Altair will have to power herself up and kill my minions. We can't let that happen.

As always, Suruga is cool-headed enough to understand.

" _Hey, this is the climax, Blitz. Your daughter is back. What are you going to do? Are you going to be loyal to poor Altair and watch your daughter die again? Or are you going to defeat her and go back to your own world with your daughter?"_

Suruga's mastery of cruelty strikes again. Ah, I loved this part when she presented her plan to me. Erina is the perfect hostage because, technically, we're not threatening with killing her. Not at all. It's Altair the one who wants to destroy the universe. If the universe is destroyed, Erina dies again. Terrible, just terrible. The fact that it was us who brought her back to make her suffer and die again is a secondary matter.

Blitz stares at his Creator as if he wants to strangle her. Suruga tells him he can choose. But we all know he doesn't have a choice.

00000

Inside the Birdcage things… things aren't going too well. Kanoya and his giant robot are playing hide and seek with Muscle Brains (no euphemism intended); Selesia and her smaller robot can't seem to scratch Altair's defenses (also not an euphemism); and Grasshopper Glasses and his sword are being trounced hard by Hakua Sho and his big stick (definitely an euphemism).

In fact, those two punks have brought their fight inside a building and the cameras are having difficulties to follow their movements. Army drones can only do so much.

" _What's wrong? Are you done already?"_ , Sho asks after a particularly nasty hit sends Grasshopper Glasses to the ground. _"Araki and Kokonoka. Don't forget those you killed. You're going to hell, Yuuya!"_

Wait, those names sound familiar. Didn't we see them when reviewing Yuuya's backstory? (I also checked it when planning for a date with Grasshopper Glasses, but then he called me 'Metchin' and now he's dead for me, no matter how handsome he is).

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Yatoji Ryo, Yuuya's and Sho's Creator, facepalming. Must be something important.

In the meantime, Sho summons his mirror centaur again:

" _Bayard!"_

Ok, this is it. If our reinforcements don't come, Yuuya is screwed. Divine justice, I suppose. But then, when everything seems lost, a scantily-clad pink haired intruder crashes the party. She punches so hard that Sho has to step back. She steps so hard that the floor breaks under her high-heeled shoes. And she blushes so hard that her head is about to explode from embarrassment.

" _Extreme Final Legend Martial Artist Hikayu is here!"_

A pause.

" _You?"_ , a dumbfounded Yuuya mutters. _"Hoshikawa?"_

Yep, that's Hoshikawa Hikayu, the heroine from that hentai game. No, I'm not kidding; somehow, through a fan disk of the original game, Onishi Nishio created a version of Hoshikawa where she's a superpowerful martial artist. With a very revealing (and totally impractical) Chinese outfit.

What a perv.

Inside the control room, everyone is silent and deadpan, except Mr. Onishi, who is smiling confidently.

" _It's… amazing you were able to get approval for that"_. Matsubara voices the thoughts we're all having at this very moment.

" _It turns out everyone likes this sort of thing"_ , Mr. Nakanogane tries to defend his pervert friend.

" _It's perfect"_ , Ohnishi proclaims.

Back to the battleground, Hoshikawa's sudden appearance has made Hakua Sho cool down. He seems to relax a bit, leaning on his stick and trying to convince her to step aside.

" _I don't like hitting girls"_ , he says.

So sexist! Wait, no, hitting girls is sexist, so he's not sexist. But refusing to fight girls because they're girls is sexist, isn't it? Damn, the morals of this world are too complicated.

" _Get out of my way"_ , he insists. _"Yes, you there, dressed in the revealing clothes"_.

Hoshikawa throws a tantrum.

" _I already know that! You don't need to say it!"_ , she cries.

The pink-haired porn actress doesn't want to be reminded of her attire. She probably fears that she'll end up in a hentai scene in front of millions of viewers.

Actually, she's right to be afraid. We prepared one sex scene, just in case. Onishi insisted it could be a secret weapon against the Military Uniform Princess.

Why, you ask? Well, after being told all the information about Altair, Onishi proposed a crazy theory about her motives. Rage against the heavens? Revenge for her Creator? Misanthropy? Nihilism? Nope. If Ohnishi is to be believed, it's a combination of closeted lesbianism and some kind of Oedipal complex. Basically, she wanted to do her Creator really hard, but never got the chance. Now she's making the rest of the world pay for her sexual frustration.

…

Yeah, I know, it's incredibly stupid, probably the stupidest theory I've ever heard. But hey, it's not as if it costs us much to have the scene in the script variations. We even included Souta's well-meaning but naive fluff, after all. If Onishi wants to write a scene with Hoshikawa playing the role of honey trap, I won't complain (Hoshikawa might, though, so we didn't tell her anything about it).

Finally, our brand new martial artist gets serious.

" _I don't have any hard feelings against you, but if you're not going to back off, then you'll have to fight me!"_

Sho gets serious too. He brandishes his big stick again and prepares to fight.

" _If you're saying you're going to take their side, then it looks like I have no choice"._

Before those three can resume fighting, though, a blueish ghost comes up behind Yuuya. That's… Hangover? Hangout? Whatever. I don't remember her name, but that's definitely Yuuya's cursed ghost servant.

The audience erupts in cheers, but I frown. The rest of those in the control room do the same.

Impossible. This shouldn't have happened. Not just because we didn't script it, but because Grasshopper Glasses shouldn't have that summoning ability anymore. Magane, the psychotic Shark Girl, stole it the last time we encountered her. What has happened?

Ok, Meteora: theory time! Perhaps she died somewhere (that would be great), and the ghost reverted back to her rightful master. Or perhaps she abused her powers over reality and the laws of the world fought back. Altair almost suffered that effect (the gods know it would be very good if it happened again), so Magane could have been a victim of it too. Or perhaps she's watching the show and she willingly decided to lend us a hand… Bwahahahaha, no, that's too ridiculous. It can't be.

Oh, well, nevermind. Whatever the cause, don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

" _I'm not really sure what's going on"_ , Yuuya says with a broad smile, of the kind he hasn't given since he lost his ghostly companion. _"but I'm back to full strength now, Sho!"_

If things were looking bad for Hakua Sho, now they're looking worse. Blitz Talker has joined the fray.

" _Things look lively here"_.

You may ask how he managed to enter the Birdcage, when it's supposed to be an alternative dimension disconnected from this world so that Altair is trapped in it. The answer is: a wizard did it. I'm the wizard. I did it. That's all.

" _Hey, old man. You're late"_ , Sho complains. _"Where have you been slacking off?"_

" _I had some quick business to take care of"_ , Blitz answers vaguely. Then he looks at Hoshikawa. _"She looks a little cold dressed like that"_.

As a family man, he probably disapproves. Hoshikawa blushes again.

" _I can handle him on my own"_ , Sho says pointing at Yuuya. _"You take the martial artist girl"_.

To his shock (and Yuuya's and Hoshikawa's surprise), Blitz shoots at him.

" _What are you trying to do?"_ , Sho complains after taking cover.

The old detective is far from enthusiastic about his betrayal. He takes his sweet time to reload his gun, and his expression is more suited for a funeral than a fight.

" _I'm a little ashamed myself"_ , he admits. He looks at Grasshopper Glasses. _"I don't want to team up with a dense guy like you, but it can't be helped. I've decided to join your camp. So, how about a second round?"_

Yes! With Hakua Sho taken care of, or about to be, it's time to enact the second betrayal of the night.

Muscle Brains, time to showcase your true loyalties.

00000

I chant:

" _Beyond Alem, the bonfire of thy afterglow still burns. Thou art as the planets and as the moon. The changes of the cries are entrusted to thee. Reveal thyself to my gauntlet!"_

Even before I finish, Alicetaria's gauntlet starts shining in a purple light. Marine claps and Mr. Takarada, Alicetaria's Creator, shouts:

" _Great! It worked!"_

As seen in the screens, Muscle Brains is surprised. Of course, she couldn't know that we had planned to give her a power-up. There was a moment when we didn't know either. It was a risk. With only Takarada's word vouching for her change of loyalties, giving new abilities to a former enemy wasn't a clever idea. But hey, she's been pretending with Kanoya for a time, and if it was all a ploy to trick us, I just need to add a new line to the spell and the gauntlet will explode. Safety first!

" _Kanoya"_ , I call the young mecha pilot.

He understands quickly.

" _I see her. It's time now!"_

And not too soon. Altair is defeating Selesia almost effortlessly. If she doesn't kill Princess Tomato is only because she wants to make the fight last longer and gather more acceptance for herself. That will be her undoing.

" _Meteora!"_ , Kanoya calls me. _"Give my machine a Concept Cohesion Boost and give Selesia an Anti-Illusion Pentagram, just like we planned!"_

" _Roger"_.

Mm, this is nice. This must be what a god feels when mortals pray for a divine blessing before facing a challenge.

Princess Tomato is overjoyed when she hears the news.

" _I've been waiting for this!"_

Alicetaria, on the other hand, is out of the loop and looks confused.

" _What should I do?"_ , she asks.

Since I don't have a direct channel to her, Kanoya is the one who gives the explanations through the robot's loudspeakers.

" _We have enough approval. I'm going to boos Gotz von Berlichingen. Use as much of your summoned gods' power as you can to destroy all of the destinies that Altair controls. Selesia is going to stop them, I'm going to gather them, and you're going to crush them. But the pentagram will only be in effect for a short time. We've only got one chance!"_

A sensible person might think that broadcasting your secret plan in the middle of a fight isn't a good strategy, but it's not just Muscle Brains who needs the information. Viewers are morons; if they don't understand the plan, they won't accept it. As that gentleman from the Österreich put it: "All propaganda must be popular and its intellectual level must be adjusted to the most limited intelligence among those it is addressed to. Consequently, the greater the mass it is intended to reach, the lower its purely intellectual level will have to be."

Proving the theory right, Muscle Brains catches the gist of it immediately.

 _"_ _ _That's the only way to save the world, right? Then I'll do it. I'm the hero".__

 _"_ _ _Me too".__

Alicetaria smiles.

 _"_ _ _There are two heroes, then. We have nothing to be afraid of. Let's go!"__

Good, good. Everyone in the room is in high spirits now. Everyone except Souta. I haven't seen him in a while. Where is my errand boy? Did he finally go to watch the show as a member of the audience? What a shame. I wanted to ask him to bring me some snacks. I'm getting hungry.

00000

In the other battlefront, things are going better too. Having to fight three enemies at the same time, Hakua Sho is at a severe disadvantage. It also makes our side look like villains ganging up on a struggling hero, but that's his problem.

In a desperate attempt, Sho floods the floor with water. A giant mirror, clever. But just when he summons Bayard again, Hoshikawa uses her secret technique:

" _Righteousness is more noble than thou! Thus, I say there is nothing in all creation more noble than righteousness! Kassatsu Banryu! Arhat, who has crossed the two rivers, thy fist shall turn to Vajra! Killing Cosmo Hell Fist!"_

(Seriously, why do our Creators write those nonsensical and lengthy spells? If time hadn't conveniently slowed down, Bayard would have impaled Hoshikawa before she could have finished her first line. Thank the gods the laws of physics in the Birdcage obey the rule of drama).

The effect is explosive. The floor erupts, debris fills the air and Sho is thrown against the wall.

" _Look at you, Sho"_ , Grasshopper Glasses gloats.

" _Yuuya!"_ , his rival shouts defiantly. _"I'll never forgive you! You killed Kokonoka and Araki. I'm taking you to hell with me!"_

At that moment, Hoshikawa turns to Grasshopper Glasses.

" _You haven't told him yet, Mirokuji? I knew something was weird"_ , she says and gets closer to Hakua Sho. _"Calm down and listen to me. Sho, Mirokuji isn't the one who killed your sister and best friend"_.

Oh, yeah, it was that! He didn't kill them. A pity, really, I was very disappointed to learn he wasn't a real bad boy, but a good boy pretending to be a bad boy. Honestly, it's understandable that I chose to erase that disappointment from my mind, but Yuuya doesn't have that excuse. Why didn't he tell his rival?

" _Yeah"_ , Yuuya admits reticently, as if he was being forced against his will to spill the beans about his innocence. _"There's that fortune teller priest who gave you Bayard, right?"_

Sho nods.

" _Yeah"._

" _You heard some stuff about me from him, right?"_

" _Yeah"._

" _He's the mastermind behind the scenes"._

" _What?"_ , Sho shouts in disbelief.

" _WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?"_ , the audience echoes him.

Back in the control room, everyone is trying hard not to laugh at Yatoji Ryu. Yuuya's and Sho's author is screaming his lungs out and looks miserable.

" _Aaaaaaahh! He gave away the spoiler! How am I supposed to write the next part?"_

Not caring a bit about his Creator's woe, Grasshopper Glasses keeps talking:

" _I found out after coming here. I didn't know why you hated me. I thought you had fun hanging out with me. That's why I went along with it. It looks like I was wrong"_.

…

Of all the dumb reasons I've heard… He's a supreme moron. I mean, since he appeared, Hakua Sho has been screaming about how he's going to punish Grasshopper Glasses for killing his sister and his friend, and I bet the same happened in their original world. What did Yuuya think it was all about? A kinky roleplay?

Understandably upset, Sho points his finger at his rival:

" _Of course! Why would anyone fight to the death just to hang out with you? You moron!"_

" _Well, I'm sorry for leaving without saying anything"._

Sho gives up. He doesn't want to continue arguing with a person that doesn't listen and keeps living in his fantasy dream land where friends try to kill each other regularly to have fun.

" _You bastard. What a dumb story! Don't lie to me!"_

" _I'm not lying. Why would I lie to you, Sho? You're always such a hot-headed fool"._

I can think of several reasons, Grasshopper Glasses. According to your backstory, you're a defector that created his own criminal gang to take over the apocalyptic wasteland. Why wouldn't you lie, actually?

" _How dare you!"_ , Sho protests. _"How do you know all of this? What evidence do you have?"_

Oh, my. Finally, a person who asks the right questions! Why didn't I get him instead of Grasshopper Glasses? On the other hand, such a sensible addition to the team might have undermined my previous bullshit and exposed my villainous plans, so perhaps it's better this way.

" _I heard it from the person who wrote it"_. Yuuya says as a matter of fact.

The dumbest moron in the world, indeed. Didn't we tell him how important was it for us to earn the audience's acceptance? Didn't I explicitly say that deviating from the script without a good reason could endanger the whole reality? We prepared different alternatives! If he didn't know how to explain it, we could have told him several ways that would have made sense! But nooooo, Mr. Grasshopper Glasses doesn't care. The fourth wall? A pesky detail. Fuck coherence, he's too cool for that.

In the control room, his Creator seems about to kill himself.

" _That bastard!"._

Kikuchihara turns to me. She's visibly worried. With just one sentence, Grasshopper Glasses could have endangered the whole operation.

" _Meteora..."_

I check the data with my machine. As stupid as it sounds, few viewers mind the revelation. They're saying things like _"This is so stupid"_ with a smiley, or _"That sounds like something Yatoji would write"_. Poor guy. Didn't he boast about how his writing was more "serious" than Nakanogane's and Matsubara's works, and how it might clash with the overall tone of the crossover? Now he's been made a fool by his own Creation.

As for the yaoi fans, they're just happy that now there's no obstacle between Sho's and Yuuya's relationship.

(Wait! Does that mean that until now they were quite content with shipping Sho with the man they thought had murdered his sister? Shipping is a bad influence on the youth. I must remember to forbid it once I take over this world).

I assuage everyone's fears.

" _The Evaluation Tracer reading is stable. Everything is okay"._

Phew, we dodged a bullet there. The sooner we can end Altair, the better.

00000

Not far from there, Selesia throws her sword away. She needs her mecha's both arms to activate the spell, and it's not as if the sword has been useful in her fight with Altair anyway.

 _"Here I go! Pattern of the contract, become the cage that binds!"_

Circles of yellow light surround Altair, creating a barrier around her. Like what happened before with Ionion Aphoria, the Military Uniform Princess doesn't try to get away. She stands there, floating in the air, looking bored. However, when the barrier activates and she gets trapped in a cube of light, her flying swords are severed from her and fall to the ground. She frowns.

" _This..."_

Take that, Altair. Now our attack isn't so harmless, is it? To make things better, it's at this point when Kanoya and Alicetaria arrive.

" _Now!"_ , Princess Tomato shouts.

" _Go!"_ , Kanoya tells Muscle Brains.

Riding the giant robot as if she was riding her horse, Alicetaria raises her magic gauntlet and prepares to give the death blow to Altair.

" _This is for Mamika!"_

Well said, Muscle Brains! Avenge the Magical Slowpoke! She could have been my greatest minion, before Altair killed her for her betrayal. Such waste cannot go unpunished!

This is it! We're going to win, we're going to win, we're going to…!

DAMMIT! Who the heck interrupted the attack? It was so fast the camera couldn't show it properly. A dark shadow, falling from the sky and kicking Kanoya's robot so hard that it crashed into the ground.

" _That's…"_ , Princess Tomato mutters.

Wait, now we have a better image. It's another robot (the Japanese do love their mecha, don't they?). It looks like Selesia's. No, scratch that, they're almost identical, but the newcomer is darker. Not white, but purple (or some shade of blue). Altair smiles confidently. Of course she wasn't worried before: she knew the cavalry would arrive.

" _The time has come"_ , she says.

The time for what? I don't know, but Princess Tomato sounds as if she was about to suffer a seizure.

" _No way!"_ , she screams, but then her voice becomes a whisper. _"Charon..."_

Charon? Wasn't that the name of her not-boyfriend in her original world? Ouch. This is going to hurt.

Good thing I never got a boyfriend in the end. As we can see now, it would have been a strategical weakness. That's why I remained single. Yep, that was the reason, a purely pragmatic approach to relationships. Not because I didn't manage to get one, not at all. I'm so intelligent, so beautiful and so attractive that men would line up to date me the moment I showed interest. It's a curse, really.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

A new update. Let's see if I can keep up this pace.

-In the original show, before Blitz shoots at him, Sho says: _"I can handle her on my own. You take the armored girl"_. With "her" supposedly being Hoshikawa. Problem is, apart from her, in that building there's no other girl. The only armored girl is Alicetaria, but she hadn't changed sides yet (so Sho should have considered her an ally). Selesia in her robot could be, but why mention her when she's supposed to be fighting Altair far away from there? And who takes care of Yuuya then? So I decided to change the line to something that made more sense in that scene.

-Yes, Meteora is quoting Hitler again. I told you she was evil.

-Where is Souta? Yeah, that's a good question. It's not as if he's getting quite close to a certain psycho with sharp teeth, not at all.


	20. Poor Communication Skills

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 19: POOR COMMUNICATION SKILLS**

Selesia is a bit distraught. She probably didn't think that she would meet her not-boyfriend again in these circumstances. You know, in the middle of the battle, robots ready to fight… and with him helping the enemy.

" _Charon!"_.

" _Selesia! I'm glad I could see you again"_ , he answers happily.

Mm, ok, perhaps there's a chance to salvage the situation. They're already the One True Pairing of their universe, it shouldn't be difficult to convince him to change sides. Especially when he repeats the same bullshit that we've heard time and again:

" _I heard about everything from her"_ , he says, pointing to the still trapped Altair. "In order to save our world, we have to shake off the yoke of this world and use the powers of the Creators".

" _Charon, that's wrong, that's..."_

" _We can save Earthmelia. Let's save the world and go back together, Selesia!"_

Sigh. I want to facepalm. As I suspected, he's a Muscle Brains 2.0. Heck, even Alicetaria is frowning and looking a bit guilty. She's looking at herself in a mirror. Not so funny anymore, is it?

On the other hand, our experiences with Alicetaria mean that we're prepared to deal with this kind of situation. True enough, Selesia's world wasn't as terrible as Alicetaria's, but there was a big war going on, and in his last novel Mr. Matsubara took the plot into a darker and edgier territory. I can't fault anyone for wanting to correct it by appealing to the Creator himself, preferably with a big gun pointing at his head. However, we know that gaining acceptance is not so easy. More importantly, we know that Altair is lying. She doesn't want to save the fictional worlds. She wants to destroy everything, the Creators, the Creations, the audience, until there's nothing left in the universe. And we have proof.

(To think that I made up that theory to serve my interests, only to be proven correct! The universe has a strange sense of humor).

Our next step is clear: we must redirect his ire, point out to him that if Altair wins his world will be destroyed too, and promise him that he can have a serious talk with his Creator later.

It's so easy! Altair, if this was your trump card, you've made a grave mist…

HEY! KANOYA! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? No, no, no, don't shoot, don't shoot, I know it was humiliating for you to get kicked to the ground, but for the love of everything that is holy and sacred in this universe, don't shoot!

" _NO!"_ , Selesia shouts.

Princess Tomato shoots her machine gun to stop Kanoya from using his arm cannon, but the young pilot flies away in his robot, still itching for a fight. Charon interprets it as he should, and attacks him before Kanoya can target him. Soon, the scene degenerates into a three-way-brawl.

This is a shitshow. Why is everyone so dumb?

Altair remains trapped in the magic cube, but she doesn't seem in a hurry to escape. She's smiling and enjoying the show. Gods, I hate it when her plans are better than mine.

Inside the control room, everyone is frustrated, especially Mr. Matsubara.

" _Damn"_ , he mutters.

My thoughts exactly, Mr. Matsubara. We prepared plans and protocols for many scenarios; we never expected that the enemy would make a cheap rehash of Alicetaria's plot. For extra harm, with a character created by one of our authors. First Hakua Sho, then Charon. Yuuya's yaoi love interest is being nullified as we speak, but only because we have him outnumbered and overpowered. Charon is stronger and has a big robot. In hindsight, we should have expected it. _I_ should have expected it. This was my mistake.

" _When I discovered that Hakua Sho got transported to this world, I should have realized that it's possible that more than one Creation per story could get transported to this world if the story becomes more popular with the viewers"_ , I admit.

To add insult to injury, Altair starts laughing maniacally and destroys the magic cube with a simple gesture. Basically, she could have escaped whenever she wanted, but waited to rub it on our face.

And now she's giving commentary!

" _Dear viewers, the friends have begun fighting among themselves. Is it for the sake of love? Is it for the shake of something they can't back down on? It's truly tragic"._

Oh, for the love of me! What's next? Announcing a sponsorship? Almost. She keeps talking about some emo philosophy for dummies, and acts as if she was the ringmaster of this circus.

" _I hope you look forward to seeing what the ending has in store for them. My role is to give, and to burn down what I have given. That's right. While it's true that this is a story, you, the audience, are also inside a performance, my brothers and sisters"_.

Breaking the fourth wall as if it was nothing, talking to the audience with such familiarity, and acting as if she was the one behind the script… Who does she think she is? Me?

" _Who do you think you are? God?"_ , Alicetaria shouts.

Thank you, Muscle Brains. Glad there's someone out there that understands. Sadly her lace can't pierce Altair's defense. The Military Uniform Princess taunts her.

" _You were so close. So close. You almost made it, but the most important part is the very end"_.

Alicetaria is getting angrier and angrier. This is bad. The angrier she gets, the more stupid her decisions are. I know from experience.

How are things going with Charon? Not very well, I see. Princess Tomato is paralyzed and can't explain herself, while Kanoya's robot is getting pwned by Charon's much smaller one. Sigh. And to make matters worse, he doesn't shut up.

" _The way things are now, we don't have any way to save our world. But if we still have a chance, no matter how small it is, then I want to take that chance"_.

Seriously, can't anyone just tell him that Altair wants to destroy his world too? Wait, wait, Princess Tomato is going to open her mouth and… And Altair interrupts. Typical.

" _Charon"_ , the twin-tailed Mutated Mop calls him. _"Whatever you choose is up to you, but don't forget: the one who tore down the wall between the real world and the created worlds was none other than me, Altair. I have the power to change the world. Whether you obtain the key or not is up to you"._

Hey! I copied your powers! I can tear down the wall between worlds too! Just ask Blitz and his cute little hostage. Perhaps we could tell Charon that important bit of information? Not that I intend to help him in his quest for justice, but it would be so easy to turn him to our side just with words. Why doesn't anyone say anything meaningful? Do I have to get down there to save the day?

Actually, better not, because that overpowered Altair might kill me the moment I step inside the Birdcage. Letting your minions do the fight for you is the basis of any overlord's combat strategy. A pity they can't do the speaking for me too…

Gods, I don't want to look at the other front. With our current luck, Hakua Sho might have knocked out Blitz and Hoshikawa, and he might be sodomizing Grasshopper Glasses with his big stick at this very moment.

(Nah, that can't be happening. Half the girls in the audience would be cheering if that were the case).

00000

Luckily, Hakua Sho is still under watch and defeated. He still doesn't want to listen to Yuuya when he tries to explain everything about his Creator, though.

" _Bullshit!"_ , he screams. _"If he's the one who created our world, then that means that he's the one we should kill. Right, Yuuya?"_

Sigh, if Charon was Alicetaria 2.0, Sho is Alicetaria 3.0. Or Charon 2.0. Is everything going to end the same way here too? Hoshikawa has the IQ of a hamster, Blitz is of the same opinion and has only joined us because we blackmailed him, and Grasshopper Glasses is… Grasshopper Glasses.

Please, put Sho out of our collective misery, since nobody seems to be able to convince anyone, and go help the others, quickly.

To my surprise, Yuuya shakes his head.

" _No"_ , he answers. _"The murder was planned and carried out by that fortuneteller. A Creator is nothing more than fate with a personality stuck onto it. No use getting mad at something like that"._

Wow, that's… That's surprisingly deep. Fatalistic, a complete disregard for the author, and it absolves people with agency of all the nasty things they've done, but deep nonetheless. Even Blitz is impressed:

" _You may be young, but you're very wise. Most people would come to the same conclusion as Sho. I'm the same. But we can't get out of here until we defeat that woman over there"_ , he adds, pointing to Altair, who is still battling Alicetaria.

Yuuya nods.

" _That girl in the military uniform… That woman. She wants to destroy this world, and all of the other worlds connected to this world, including mine. She's bragging about her plans over there"_.

YES! YES, YES, YES! FUCKING YES!

Finally! Someone has said it! Is it that difficult to reveal that Altair is simply an omnicidal maniac? Is there a curse, perhaps? One of her powers?

Grasshopper Gla… I mean, Yuuya, you've become my favorite minion.

" _Yuuya, are you serious? The world? You're crazy!"_ , his frenemy says.

" _I told you. Why would I lie to you now? What would I gain from lying to you?"_

Using logic and arguments to convince the other person? Good, good, that's cool.

Yuuya puts her arm on Sho's shoulder and makes him get closer, until they're literally face to face. You can hear the yaoi fans melting.

" _So, let's work together, Sho. Then, when we get back to our world, I'll go with you to kill that damn fortuneteller"_.

Now sing an emotional connection, a shared past and a future promise to appeal to his feelings and reinforce the logical messages? Oh, my, that's so hot. A lesson in rhetoric. I've always said Yuuya was very intelligent! (Please, don't check past chapters, they don't exist). I'd kiss him right now if I could. I wonder, why did I get angry at him in the first place?

Hakua Sho stands up.

" _I got it. We're calling off the fight. I can't see any reason why you would lie in such a messed-up situation like this"_.

Victory, at last! See what some carefully selected words can achieve? I know it better than anyone, since I managed to convince an army of heroes and the government of this country that I'm a trustworthy person.

" _Thanks"_ , a happy Yuuya says. _"I know that you're a really stubborn guy, so I thought I'd have to bring Metchin over here and spend all night trying to convince you"_.

Ah. Now I remember why I hated him. "Metchin". Ugh, now I want to kill him, but I'll be magnanimous. He managed to convince Sho to change sides and, as he's pointed out, was sensible enough to even consider the option of calling for my help. Did any of the idiots over there have the same idea? Nooooo, nobody has called and said: "Hey, Meteora, we dumb, we words bad, please, teach us good words so we can make idiot guy see light".

Ok, with Sho on our side, our firepower has increased. And if Grasshopper Glasses keeps being this intelligent, we need to get him close to that Charon so that he can do his Rhetoric Fu (some of the authors here tell me it should be called "Talk No Jutsu", but I don't care) again.

Because if it's up to the others, we're screwed.

00000

Things haven't changed in the slightest, that's for sure. A pissed-off Kanoya shoots at Charon, Charon retaliates, and Selesia tries to stop them from killing each other and have her blue-haired not-boyfriend listen to reason.

" _Charon, listen to me!"_ , she pleads to him. _"What she's saying… What Altair is saying, it's not true!"_

Well, that's a decent start, but can't you get to the point? Like, "Altair wants to destroy our world too"? How many times did I repeat it in just one chapter? That's the first, most important thing about Altair!

" _It's true that this is the world of the Creators"_ , Charon points out. _"So that means the world can be changed! There's no way we can stop the Avalon Brigade alone. So many friends have died… So much blood, and so many tears have been shed. But if we had the power of Creation in this world, if we had the powers of the person who created our world, then everything would be different."_

He's single-minded, I'll give him that. Ok, let's try an alternative approach: with the government's support, we've been able to create a multiversal crossover and introduce many, many changes. I'm sure we can promise him a happy ending, enforced as soon as we can, as we gave Blitz his daughter back. Mr. Matsubara might not like it, but hey, it's his artistic pride against our lives. Surely he'll understand (if not, well, that's why torture was invented).

Unfortunately, Selesia opens her mouth and spoils the plan even before I could suggest it.

" _Getting the viewers to accept things isn't as easy as you think. The power of the Creators doesn't work like that"._

It doesn't, Princess Tomato? Then, where the heck do you think your new abilities come from? In any case, that's not the point! Don't go off on a tangent!

Kanoya interrupts, trying to shoot Charon again. The only thing he accomplishes is catching his rival's attention, who flies his robot like a deadly fairy and cuts off his arm. I mean, Kanoya's robot's arm. Our hot-blooded pilot screams as if the arm was his, though.

His concentration broken, Kanoya falls to the ground. Charon goes for the killing blow, but Selesia stops him in the nick of time.

Now Charon is getting angry. Princess Tomato boring him with pointless talk? The usual. Princess Tomato protecting the enemy from him? Treason!

" _Why? Do you intend to abandon our kingdom? Our world?"_ he demands to know. _"Selesia, do you believe in the Creator? The person who played around with our world? The person who created the reason that our world is drowning in blood?"_

Come on, Selesia. This is your best chance to explain him that Altair wants to do the same or worse.

" _I… I know… I know that our world is a place where terrible wars are being fought. But I also know that our Creator created our world so that you and I could see the grand finale someday, after fighting together to the very end. That's right, isn't it? Matsubara?"_

In the control room, Mr. Matsubara nods with a determined look in his face.

" _Of course!"_

…

Wait. Wait, wait, wait. Princess Tomato, is this really your reasoning? Your not-boyfriend is talking about his friends and all the people in your world dying, and your answer is "That's okay as long as you and me live happily ever after"? Wow, that's… That's very selfish. And cold-hearted. And callous. I understand, of course; I'd think the same in her place. But I'm a villain. Princess Tomato is supposed to be a heroine.

As expected, her answer doesn't convince Charon in the slightest.

" _Selesia, I thought you would understand"_ , he laments.

He goes on, talking about how the Avalon Brigade keeps having the upper hand no matter what they do. No matter how strong the good guys become, those enemy magic knights always get stronger. So convenient for the bad guys, isn't it, Mr. Matsubara? In the end, Charon admits:

" _I'm tired already"._

Mr. Matsubara looks very guilty right now.

" _He's not the kind of man who would give up at a time like this. But in the story I wrote, it is true that he was getting tired of fighting"_.

Oh, fuck. He's talking about THAT story.

As you probably remember, when Selesia was brought to this world, she didn't have any memories about what happened in the last novel written by Mr. Matsubara. For a time, I thought she might have been Selesia's version from the anime instead. But since she's been affected by Mr. Matsubara's new texts, I now think she's some kind of avatar that represents the idea of Selesia in the general consensus. It's all very Platonic.

So, what about that last novel? It seems that, pressured by comments that said that his story was getting too predictable and too boring, Mr. Matsubara decided to make it darker and edgier. Victories are overturned! Enemies kill lots of red shirts! Beloved secondary characters die! Friends reveal themselves as traitors! Heroes become emo!

Unsurprisingly, the novel was a failure. Fans screamed that the series was Ruined Forever. They erased it from their memories. That's why our poor, innocent Selesia wasn't tainted by that abomination.

And it would have remained that way, but with the crossover, we needed Mr. Matsubara to write new stories. Sticking to his artistic integrity, he didn't renounce his previous work. He built the new tales from it. So, this Charon became part of our story without us being aware of it. Also, since the crossover has been wildly popular, it was increased the sales of all his previous works, including that terrible last novel. I suppose that Emo!Charon has become popular enough for him to appear in such a state here.

Ugh. Suddenly, I'm thinking that letting Charon kill Matsubara would be the quickest solution. He deserves it.

A worried Mr. Nakanogane asks him:

" _Do you have a plan?"_

" _It's no use. He said it already. If that's what the character decided, then there's nothing more we can do"._

Wow, so much respect for free will. It almost makes you forget that we blackmailed Blitz, who definitely had more and better information than that idiot of Charon, to change his mind.

Hey, what if we use Selesia as a hostage? Mm...

00000

Meanwhile, and surprisingly enough, Alicetaria aka Muscle Brains proves that she's the only one with enough sense to forget about Charon and go directly for the head. She hasn't forgotten that it's Altair the one that must be terminated. A pity her blows are as useless as ever.

" _You bastard!"_ , Alicetaria barks when Altair blocks her attack one more time. _"You have so much contempt for everything in this world!"_

" _It's not contempt"_ , Altair corrects her, while exchanging blows. _"I only desire to obliterate this world! This world has so much beauty and splendor, but it didn't give anything to my Creator. I feel nothing but despair for this world, knight!"_

See? She's confessing already! Can't we make a recording and send it to the people fighting Charon?

Despite Alicetaria's best efforts, the fight is going nowhere. Still, the knight is maintaining a solid defense. She won't be taken by surprise either.

So Altair decides to goad her.

" _I'm going to tell you something. You're right about who killed Mamika. It was me"._

Honestly, I thought Alicetaria would charge right away. But Muscle Brains tries to keep her cool. She's improved.

Unfortunately, Altair hasn't finished.

" _She said she wanted to save me. Oh, the hubris! As I result, I made her pay for her arrogance with her blood. Even when her intestines were spilled out on the ground, she kept saying the same thing. What a foolish girl"._

Oh, well, this is it. No way Alicetaria can stand such a provocation.

" _For the sake of seeing things through to the very end, since I'm the hero, since I'm Alicetaria, who Mamika believed in… That's why! Gotz von Berlichingen! Grant my final wish, o power of all spirits! Give me a miracle!"_

Her gauntlet glows, then the glow envelopes her and her flying horse, until she shines like a radiant star. I'm outside the Birdcage, yet I can feel the power. Incredible. Maybe Altair shouldn't have angered her. Viewers love it when heroes punish villains who gloat about their misdeeds.

Alicetaria charges. Altair sends her swords, but Muscle Brains blocks them easily. Altair tries to block her attack, but it's too fast, too strong.

In one fell swoop, Alicetaria impales Altair with her lance. And it's not a metaphor. Opening a railway tunnel in Mount Altair? That would be a metaphor. A very painful metaphor. For Altair.

Everyone goes silent. Altair, Alicetaria, all the Creations fighting in the Birdcage, the authors and government officials in the control room, the audience. An aurora borealis appears in the night sky. What a pretty killing blow.

This is it! We did it, we…

" _Holopsicon, the Fourteenth Movement. The Vicissitudes of Fortune"._

WHAT? Now Altair is unharmed and it's Alicetaria who has a big hole in her stomach? WTF?

" _Let me tell you what just happened"_ , a very calm Altair says. _"Your spear did stab through my body. Just like this. But I changed the principle of cause and effect that follows. How pathetic"_.

Altair and her infinite bag of dirty tricks. We were supposed to have the audience cheer for us so that our attacks hurt her! This can't be happening.

No, wait! Alicetaria is trying a desperate final attack. That's also a common heroic trope. Go, go, Muscle Brains! Die in a blaze of glory to save us all!

" _It's… It's not over yet. Altair… As long as there are still people who believe in me… As long as there are people who believe in the golden ending… The story will not end!"_

Her gauntlet produces a big ball of fire. She's about to strike Altair in her smug face… but then she suffers a severe case of flying sword in the head.

That was anticlimactic.

Alicetaria falls to the ground like a bag of potatoes, but she doesn't touch it. Before that, both her horse and herself disappear in a cloud of blue pixels.

" _You're such a classic hero. What a grand ending. It's the deepest desire of any knight, Alicetaria"_ , Altair says with a cruel smile in her face. _"But how unfortunate. This place isn't your story. You aren't the main character in this world. You're just a supporting role"_.

Mr. Takarada, Alicetaria's Creator, gets out of the control room. But he doesn't get very far, because we can clearly hear him cry. Well, now he knows how it felt for Alicetaria to see all those people from her world die without being able to stop it. Surely it will help him improve his writing in the future!

IF we have a future, that's it.

00000

Alicetaria's death has an unfortunate side-effect: my minions are so horrified that they just stand there without doing anything. Come on! Before this battle, Alicetaria had been one of our greatest enemies. She tried to kill me, remember?

No, they don't remember. The only one who knows what he's doing is Charon, and he's the enemy.

" _I got this!"_

Now that Selesia is distracted, he flies in his purple mecha to destroy Kanoya's robot once and for all. Surprisingly, it's Hoshikawa, yes, crybaby Hoshikawa, who stops crying and intercepts him. The old Hoshikawa would have been squashed like a bug on a windshield, but she's a powerful martial artist now. So powerful that her kick sends Charon crashing to the ground. Meanwhile, she lands gracefully on top of the severed arm of Kanoya's robot.

" _Charon!"_ , Selesia shouts.

This is perfect. Charon has been momentarily incapacitated. He can be attacked with exposition right now. Yuuya is close, if he runs he might be still in time to do the talking. If not, perhaps Hoshikawa might have learned a thing or two from him.

In fact, she's about to talk. Go, porn actress! Convince that guy!

…

Why is she turning to Princess Tomato?

" _Selesia, blah, blah blah, being decisive. Blah, blah, blah so indecisive. Blah, blah, blah, made a mistake. Blah, blah, blah, regretted it deeply_ _. Blah, blah, blah, really important to you. Blah, blah, blah, I really like Masayuki. Blah, blah, blah, abandon everyone. Blah, blah, blah, all of us here. Blah, blah, blah, we made choices. Blah, blah, blah..."_

What. Who cares about your life? Stop wasting time with Selesia! She's already on our side, it's Charon we need to convince! Seriously, why is she doing this?

I stare at her Creator, but it's Mr. Yatoji who answers:

" _She's talking about how her childhood friend Miho was killed in a car accident"_.

Onishi Nishio nods and closes his eyes.

" _Chapter 5"_.

So, what's this? Is she trying to undermine our efforts because she wants vengeance against her Creator too? Or is she so twisted that she wants Selesia to kill her not-boyfriend to experience the same pain she felt? Wow, she might be even more evil than me!

It doesn't matter. Kanoya, who never learns, activates his giant robot again.

" _It's just my right arm"_ , he says confidently.

Mm, he reminds me of a certain black knight in my game who was deemed the second most popular character after me. You know, it's telling that the most liked characters in Avalken were us NPCs; so much for the hero and his party. And one of them was a blatant copy taken from a Western character (not me, I'm talking about the black knight, of course; I'm very original).

Forgetting about the pink-haired powerhouse and his not-girlfriend, Charon focuses on his mecha rival and flies away to fight him. Again.

Princess Tomato goes after them. Hoshikawa attempts to stop her and bore her with more sad tales about her backstory (porn with plot is definitely a mistake), but Altair saves us from that fate by going after her with her flying swords.

" _Only a barbarian would make so much noise and disturb my melody. You're spoiling the audience's fun"_.

You tell her, Altair! Wait, you're the enemy, I shouldn't be cheering for you right now.

Hoshikawa, Yuuya, Sho and Blitz attack her at the same time. Blitz even manages to surround her in a ball of gravity. But it's useless. When Hoshikawa charges with one of her secret techniques (Cosmic Heck Fisting? Something like that), Altair blocks her without any problems. She even points out her weaknesses:

" _Your powers lack balance. Although the viewers may have accepted your powers, those types of characters aren't very good for building stories around"_.

Said the overpowered meme.

I don't want to look at Kanoya, Selesia and Charon. I think I'm in for another disappointment.

00000

Oh, oh! Perhaps I spoke too soon. Instead of repeating the same useless tactic of trying to shoot him down from afar, Kanoya has allowed Charon to get close and has grabbed him with his remaining arm. Well played.

Now, kill him.

" _If you call yourself a hero, then don't be afraid of what Selesia is saying"_.

Wait, Kanoya, NOW you want to talk to him? Boys! They can't keep a civilized conversation without proving who's stronger first. Must be testosterone poisoning. Oh, well, better late than never.

" _You just don't want to admit it. That your world was created by someone else and that there's no one but you who can save your world. You won't admit any of it, because you're scared. That's why Altair was able to deceive you with her lies. If you really are the person Selesia believes in, you would never do that"_.

Yes, yes! Now this is the moment when you tell him which lies Altair's been telling, right?

" _From the moment you chose to come here, you stopped being a hero. Selesia is much more of a hero than you are! If you really are a hero, then fulfill your responsibilities until the very end!"_

No, it wasn't testosterone poisoning. It's the hero syndrome, the rot that eats the brains of its victims until the only thing left is a husk that says "Me hero! Hero always good! You against me, you bad!". And then they ask how come villains and morally ambiguous characters are so popular.

Charon says it himself:

" _You have no idea what you're talking about, boy!"_

In the end, despite Kanoya's best efforts to crush him, it's Charon who gets the upper hand. They're about to clash again, but then Selesia appears to send her not-boyfriend away with one of her attacks.

" _Selesia… You..."_

Princess Tomato is crying. We have cameras installed in her cockpit, so we can see it and broadcast it for everyone to watch. It will make her look more sympathetic, which is necessary after our previous blunders.

" _You're the one who taught me to choose my path, Charon. Hikayu is right. Somewhere, I had to choose. That's why I choose to fight you!"_

It's official: everyone is stupid except me. Of all the people, you decided to follow Hoshikawa's advice? There go my chances to recruit Charon for our case.

Sigh. Who cares. Kill him already, cry a bit and let's get on with it.

It isn't that simple, though. Despite Selesia's newfound resolve, it's clear that Charon is the superior pilot. Regardless, those two still find time to reminisce about the old times. "Those were fun times", "It made me happy", "I really liked you"… Geez, get a room, you two!

In the end, Charon impales her with his long sword. She embraces him and gives him a shock that paralyzes him. No, neither of them is an euphemism.

" _Kanoya!"_ , she calls my other minion. _"Open the reflector field at full strength from there. Then we can crush Vogelchevalier"_.

Great idea! Kanoya couldn't use that attack earlier because Charon would have escaped easily, but now he's a sitting duck. It's perfect…! But hey, wouldn't it mean that Princess Tomato would be crushed too?

Kanoya realizes it. He doesn't want to fire the reflector field.

" _I can't last much longer. Please"_ , Princess Tomato begs him.

" _No! I can't do that!"_

" _I can't win against Charon. Neithat can your Gigas Machina, now that it's damaged. But with this, we can destroy Altair's last shield"._

" _No! Selesia!"_

But she doesn't listen. She's talking to herself.

" _Everything you… No, everything Meteora and everyone else built up has been destroyed by my hesitation"._

By the gods! Princess Tomato is a great minion. Always having her overlady in mind, aware of her failings and feeling guilty because of them. The rest of you should learn from her example!

That said, it's not as if we need to go that far. Can't Kanoya just smash Charon from behind? Or Blitz could shoot him from afar. Yuuya has a flying ghost, Hakua Sho has his magic centaur that travels through glass. Or, you know, we could try to convince Charon again, can't we? Let's review our options, now that we have time.

Sadly, Princess Tomato won't have any of it.

" _Kanoya. I chose this. This is how my story goes"_ , a gloomy Selesia insists. The she calls me: _"Meteora, this is where I make my exit. I hope you succeed"_.

Oh, fuck. She's serious. She wants to die. Did turning against her not-boyfriend hurt her that much?

Kanoya tries to be the voice of reason again. Tells her that he doesn't want to give up on her. But she's adamant and gives him the fateful order:

" _Do it. You're a hero too, aren't you?"_

'Hero'. His trigger word. That was low, Selesia. But very effective. In the end, he does it.

" _DAMN IT!"_ , he screams while firing the reflector field, a giant force field that expands and expands until it engulfs the embracing robots.

At first, the Vogelchevaliers resist. But once their armor cracks, they collapse.

In the control room, Mr. Matsubara breaks his silence. He casts his pride as an author aside, renounces all the lies he's told himself for years about the quality of his story and the characterization of his Creations, and reacts as a father would do:

" _Run, Selesia! That's enough. Forget about being a hero! Forget about the story!"_

But it's too late. He wrote her to be a perfect hero, so she'll die as one.

" _Matsubara… Please, give my world stories and coffee. Please"._

Then there's an explosion.

Then Selesia, Princess Tomato, my first and most beloved minion, is no more.

…

Excuse me. I think I got some dust in my eyes, because I suddenly feel the need to cry.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

This hasn't been my week. Family troubles (my father fell into depression several years ago, and still has relapses), and Spain lost in the penalties! My best luck to France, Uruguay, Croatia, Brazil and whoever classifies next. On the bright side, that means I was even more motivated to pour my frustration in my writing. I was sympathizing with Meteora a lot in this chapter.

-One of the things I didn't like in the episode was that, while Yuuya explained the situation very clearly to Sho, nobody did the same for Charon. In Tv Tropes terms, it was as if all the characters fighting him were holding the Idiot Ball to force a dramatic conclusion to the battle. In the same light, throughout the episode, Selesia is painted as in the wrong for trying to talk things with Charon instead of fighting him as Kanoya does. Her arc, as symbolized by Hoshikawa's words, is to stop that and fight instead. Problem is, the talkative approach did work wonders with Sho.

-The thing about Matsubara's last novel is made up to explain the differences in Selesia and Charon. Selesia, when she was summoned, didn't remember anything about the last novel, which had shocking deaths and betrayals. Charon, on the other hand, seems to know those events too well. How come? Well, here's my attempt at an explanation.


	21. Hostile Takeover

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 20: HOSTILE TAKEOVER**

" _This can't be..."_ , Hoshikawa cries.

Yes, it can be. Princess Tomato is dead. We could have added Charon to our roster, but instead we lost my first minion. Disgraceful. And do you know whose fault it is? It's your fault, you damn porn actress, for giving her weird ideas. And Kanoya's, for being a hot-headed idiot that always shoots first. And Yuuya's, for arriving too late. And I suppose Blitz and Sho are also at fault, but I still have to think of a reason.

Of course, it isn't my fault. I'm the boss, after all. If I watched everything without saying anything that could have changed the course of events, it was only because I was so confused by your idiocy that I was left speechless. Yeah, that is.

…

Ok, ok, perhaps it's a bit of my fault. Only a tiny little bit. In hindsight, there are people far guiltier than any of us: the Creators.

Yes, the Creators. Ultimately, Selesia, Hoshikawa, Kanoya and the rest of my faulty minions can't help having been born as brainless goody-two-shoes heroes. That's the way they were written. Who has shown wisdom and sensibility since the beginning? Altair. Blitz. Yuuya from time to time. And me. All villains. Even Shark Girl has been clever enough not to show her ugly face again since we lost track of her. She's probably taking a plane to get out of the country ASAP, if she hasn't done it yet.

While my minions (and everyone inside the control room) react in shock, Altair chews the scenery again:

" _What a story. You fulfilled your duties and sacrificed your life to accomplish your mission. It's the deepest desire of every hero"._

Hey! That's not true! She said herself that her deepest desire was to have other, less important people sacrifice their lives so that Charon and her could live happily ever after. My Selesia was a dumb hero, but no as dumb as the rest (it's been forty seconds since she died and I already miss her).

Altair goes on breaking the fourth wall, until Hoshikawa calls her out:

" _Why are you doing this? You're a Creation too! You're acting like this is all a show!"_

Well, technically, it is. Did she forget there are cameras everywhere in the Birdcage? Hey, now that I think about it, is Hoshikawa aware that millions of people have seen her most embarrassing moments in battle?

" _That's because this is a show"_ , Altair points out the obvious. _"That's what the audience's acceptance is for. That's what my powers are for. Everything here is a pageant that has been set up just for that purpose. You're the one who doesn't understand, Hoshikawa Hikayu"_.

What a burn. Hoshikawa is looking bad in front of the Big Bad, so she gets angry.

"I'll never forgive people like you!"

Yeah, people that make you look dumb in front of others are a pain in the ass, even when they are right. Fortunately, I'm more intelligent than anyone else, so I've never had to suffer it.

Hoshikawa powers up. Her nunchaku becomes a cannon, which becomes a mace, which becomes a giant spinning top, which becomes a flail… which for some reason is smaller than the previous weapon. Whatever Onishi wrote for her new setting, it's weird.

" _Kassatsu Hakugeki Retsuzan!"_

The porn actress turned martial artist charges forward. Altair isn't fazed in the slightest, despite Hoshikawa having defeated Sho with a single punch and kicked a mecha to the ground before. She takes her rifle and pretends to play it as if she played a violin.

Oh, oh. I'm not going to like what happens next, am I?

A wave of energy passes through Hoshikawa. Suddenly, her bizarre weapon and her Chinese dress evaporate. She's back to her old self, Hoshikawa Hikayu, the high school girl. She's as surprised as we are.

Before my pink-haired minion can react, Altair grabs her neck.

" _Holopsicon, the Thirteenth Movement: Outline Origin"_ , she explains. _"This takes plot twists that were added onto the story and brings them back to the beginning"._

Oh, come on! Does she have a convenient power for everything? You know, I'm beginning to suspect that perhaps we should have devoted an entire research time to check and study every available power Altair has. Or at least the most famous ones. Why didn't we do it, I wonder? Ah, yeah, I remember, we believed that just creating new awesome powers for our chosen warriors was enough.

Oh, well, not everything is lost. If Hoshikawa's martial arts are useless, time for Plan B. Heroes always power up when villains kill cute girls, especially if they are helpless civilians.

It's your time to shine, Hoshikawa! See? She's already crying and gasping for air. A perfect performance to earn extra sympathy. Great job, Hikayu! Now die! Give us a tragic death to undermine Altair!

Unfortunately, the mutated mop realizes the gist of my strategy pretty quickly.

"Killing you in a fight wasn't part of my plans", she reveals. "Or rather, it wasn't part of my plans for my story. Everything happening here is all a script made just for me. And it's also a script made for the enjoyment of everyone watching. I'll let you play the role of an innocent bystander. Feel how powerless you are. You're useless. You can't do anything. All you can do is sit back and watch the world end".

Damn. She's good. Not only she releases her, making Plan B useless, but she broke her spirit with words just in case. Truly, Altair is the only one that can match my intellect.

Now it's Yuuya's turn to attack (Why didn't he intervene when Altair seemed about to kill her? Did he fear that the script would make him sacrifice his life to save her? Clever boy). The Military Uniform Princess blocks it easily, but it looks as if Grasshopper Glasses just wanted to be close enough to ask a pressing question:

" _Why didn't you erase our powers too? Why didn't you erase us? You can do that, can't you?"_

As always, Yuuya is wiser than he looks. But he's still a punk that can't see the bigger picture. Blitz, who is carrying an unconscious Hoshikawa, tells him:

" _She's not going to do that"_.

Of course she isn't. She's too intelligent for that.

00000

Meanwhile, in the control room, people are as puzzled as Yuuya. I should have expected. Oh, well, fortunately for them, I'm here. Time for exposition!

" _Right now, they're all characters in a story that Altair created"_ , I explain. _"Altair used our own system against us. Right now, we're not the ones who are in control of the story. The Birdcage has turned into a booster for the purpose of increasing her acceptance"_.

Mr. Matsubara punches the wall. He's taking the deaths of his Creations better than I hoped for, but he needs to vent his frustration somehow. I understand. I'm clenching my fist a bit. Very emotional of me.

What? Did you think I was going to say "Oh, shit, we're doomed"? Not at all.

I admit Altair's insight has been problematic, and losing Selesia and Charon to mass stupidity has been a harsh pill to swallow (Alicetaria's death, on the other hand, was acceptable; I wasn't sure we could count on her loyalty to begin with). Now Hoshikawa is down, Kanoya's mecha is almost useless, and Yuuya, Sho and Blitz can't handle Altair on their own. But it's okay. They were never supposed to beat her. Their role was to give us time to deploy our secret weapon (Ionion Aphoria). Then our secret super weapon (the magic cube and the triple attack). And finally, the real secret super weapon.

Thank you, Altair. In your rush to increase acceptance for the show, you've played right into our hands.

Mr. Matsubara has the same idea in mind:

" _Meteora, what's the current situation?"_

" _The level of acceptance inside the Birdcage continues to increase. The audience approves of Altair's story. They're watching closely to see what happens next"._

" _Then we still have a chance"._

I nod.

" _Let's do it"_ , Mr. Matsubara says. _"In terms of the story, this is the perfect time to use our secret weapon"._

Everyone is in agreement.

" _We already put some foreshadowing for this in the prequel"_ , Mr. Yatoji points out, while Marine nods.

" _That's what we pulled that all-nighter for"_ , a confident Mr. Nakanogane reminisces.

I check the numbers of my magic machine.

" _The acceptance level has already exceeded the threshold needed for making the character appear in this world. We cannot ask for a better opportunity than this"_.

The die is cast. Kikuchihara gives the orders:

" _Prepare for the finale. We will proceed to the SI Appearance stage. This is CIC. Kanoya, can you hear me?"_

At the other end of the line, Kanoya sounds depressed. He probably feels guilty because of what happened to Selesia (serves him right), since technically he killed her. But Kikuchihara doesn't have time for his bullshit.

" _The special spells we used on Gigas Machina are still usable, right?"_ , she demands to know.

" _Some of them don't work anymore. The attack spells are gone"_ , he mutters.

" _We don't need them"_ , Kikuchihara interrupts him. _"Meteora will cast a spell now. Divert the remaining drive power to the Authority Pentagram"_.

Now that Kanoya's giant robot is in position, my time has come. Obviously, who else can defeat Altair? Only I, the real protagonist of this story, can save the world. And then I will conquer it, but first thing first. From the safety of the control room, using Gigas Machina as the antenna, I cast the spell:

" _We obey thy authority. One moment shall continue for a thousand years. Eternal wandering. Use the authority of eternity. Give root to our hypothesis. In the name of the South Star, bring forth the dawn of the Holopsicon now!"_

I assure you, Altair won't see this coming.

00000

Suddenly, a giant red ball of energy appears from above and crashes into Altair. She tries to block it but, for once, it's the Military Uniform Princess who is thrown away. Good, good.

Everyone is shocked. Altair, the audience, my own minions. Yuuya mutters:

" _That's..."_

A new challenger approaches. She looks like Altair, but in a different way. Taller and slimmer, as if drawn by a newbie artist who admired CLAMP and Matsumoto. The same giant mutated mop of hair, but no military uniform. A double-bladed lance instead of swords. And, more importantly, quiet and expressionless instead of gloating like a madwoman.

Sirius, our own version of Altair. You know how the saying goes: "If you can't beat them, copy them and make the copy beat them". Perfect.

I'd consider her silence a strong point, but it's unnerving the people at the control room.

" _I wonder why she's not talking"_ , a worried Marine asks.

" _The acceptance hasn't reached all the way to the inside of the character. The acceptance level is barely able to sustain her existence. But that's as far as it goes"_ , Mr. Matsubara tries to explain.

Oh, so cute! Look at the poor little author, infodumping as if he had any idea about the subject. Who's the one with the acceptance-level machine, Mr. Matsubara? Didn't I just say that the acceptance level was beyond the threshold we needed? Sirius has been perfectly summoned to this world. If a meme with zero narrative content like Altair can talk and talk, so can Sirius. If she doesn't do it, it's not because of acceptance. It's because of me.

You see, after witnessing the communication failure of all my other minions and losing Selesia because of it, it's pretty clear that letting the Creations talk is a mistake. I'm more than enough to do all the exposition we need, thank you very much. To achieve my goals, a strong and obedient puppet that obeys my every command is much better. That's why I summoned her this way.

Not that I'm going to tell it to the people here, of course. I'm sure they wouldn't approve. Oh, well, I can play along with Mr. Matsubara's explanation for now.

" _Even so"_ , I pretend to concede, _"right now, she has the same powers that Altair does. She's a perfect reflection. That's what she is"_.

Who needs free will when you can remote control a killing machine? Time to prove my point.

" _Sirius"_ , I call her. _"Eliminate Altair!"_

She nods. That's it, no sarcastic comment, no bravado, no useless waste of oxygen. I love it.

On the other hand, Altair is pissed off. She's recovered from the previous hit and now she's had a better chance to examine her new enemy. And she doesn't like what she's seeing.

" _You can't be serious! This design is the last that my dear friend created in the last moments before her death!"_

Ah, she realized. As expected of mommy's little girl, she remembers her work very well.

Indeed, Altair is right. To make Sirius' connection with her younger sister more genuine, we "borrowed" Shimazaki Setsuna's drawings. This was one of the many designs she created based on the Eternal Wars Megalosphere game, specifically the last Altair prototype before she uploaded the World Étude video.

Before you ask, no, we didn't ask for permission. Why would we? Setsuna is dead, her parents have no clue that their daughter created a monster, and with the little time we had, it was better to just steal her drawings rather than trying to unravel the legal puzzle that is the rights to a meme. If Setsuna didn't want her work to be stolen by corporations, she should have copyrighted it. Then the government could have expropriated it legally. In any case, between the emergency powers and our army of lawyers, if the parents realize and sue us, we're covered. This is the adult way of doing things. Not that I expect Altair to understand.

The two mutated mops fight. Soon, Altair realizes that Sirius is more than a match for her.

" _It's not just the design"_ , she says to her copy. _"So you're able to use the Holopsicon too?"_

Had she been any other minion, Sirius would probably have answered with some gratuitous action cliche. But she's Sirius, my perfect doll, so she stays silent. Frustrated by the lack of response, Altair uses her Holopsicon to attack her with a giant blue ball of energy. In turn, Sirius counterattacks with a red ball. Blue versus Red, who will win?

Now we're witnessing the power of Creation. Altair is a cheap meme created by a depressed teenager. Sirius is the brainchild of some of the best selling manga and anime authors of Japan, supported by a joint effort between the largest media corporations in the country and the very government. A complex background, a narratively sound reason to exist, foreshadowed by the most popular crossover ever created. Also, she was summoned by me, the wisest, most intelligent, most beautiful magician in all the universe.

The victor is a foregone conclusion: Sirius' ball overpowers Altair's and a big explosion engulfs the Birdcage. If Blitz, Yuuya and Sho know what's good for them, they should have taken Hoshikawa and run away. If not, a pity. At this point, they're barely better than NPCs.

" _Check the equipment!"_ , Kikuchihara barks when the control room loses the signal.

" _It's not a malfunction"_ , I have to explain. _"The world inside the Birdcage is trying to resolve the contradiction. It's reconstructing itself"_.

Soon enough, the cameras are working again. We can see Altair reforming herself from a cloud of pixels. Oh, my. Sirius' attack was so strong that we were this close to erase her for good. And we've just begun. The Military Uniform Princess is shaken, but tries to show confidence.

" _You've made a pretty good copy of me"_ , she admits. _"I expected nothing less of you, Creators. That's no small feat. Getting the audience to accept a completely new Creation would have taken a lot of time and effort. It looks like you found a way to gain enough acceptance to compete against me in such a short amount of time"_.

Stop, Altair, you're going to make me blush! I wonder if she knows that we have synchronized Sirius to her Existence Coefficient. Probably not, otherwise she would start to panic. Everything up to now has proceeded according to our plans.

Sirius and Altair clash again, lance against sword. They're evenly matched, much to the former's chagrin. In what appears to be a mistake, Sirius throws her lance but fails and it lands on the ground. She's wide open. Altair senses her chance to strike and is about to give her the coup de grace when she finds herself paralyzed.

" _What?"._

Ha! Take that, Altair! You should have paid more attention to the ground. The point where Sirius' lance landed? There's a magic circle now, with a spell so powerful that it can stop even you. Of course, I'm sure that sooner or later you'd manage to find your way out, but we're not going to give you the chance this time. No Charon, Alicetaria, Sho or Blitz to work as your meatshields, Altair.

Sirius, the time has come. Execute Movement 66.

" _Holopsicon, the Sixty-Sixth Movement: Existence Change"_ , she says in a deadpan voice.

And without any hesitation, Sirius takes her lance and stabs herself.

While the audience gasps in horror, a strange effect occurs: Sirius starts bleeding pixels, but so does Altair. In fact, their digital wound is spreading at the same pace. Finally, Altair realizes what's happening, but it's too late for her to stop it:

" _You bastard! You're trying to take over who I am! You're trying to become me!"_

MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Now you understand! If we can't erase you, we'll change you! We'll fuse you with Sirius and use her as the template. You'll become our puppet. No, you'll become MY puppet. I've always said that Altair could have been a most useful minion, haven't I? And I always get what I want.

Come on, come on! Hurry up! Disappear already so that you become my slave! Let Sirius absorb your very being! Your body! Your mind! Your power! Your soul! Everything! GIVE IT ALL TO ME!

Then there's a huge explosion and all the cameras go off. Damn!

00000

The next seconds are the most excruciating in my life. Did it work? Or did we fail again?

Thankfully, when the cameras get signal again, there's only one figure on the ground: Sirius. Or perhaps I should say the new Altair. Yuuya rushes to her and examines the unconscious girl. Now her face is like a perfect blend of Sirius and Altair. Sirius was too schematic, full of sharp angles and straight lines. This new minion of mine has curves, more details and softer features. She looks alive. Well, she'd look alive if she opened her eyes. Even Grasshopper Glasses is worried.

" _Hey, old man, what am I supposed to do with her?"_ , he asks Blitz.

" _Why don't you try waking her up with a kiss?"_ , the detective suggests.

" _A kiss?"_

Don't you dare, Mirokuji Yuuya! You're walking on thin nice right now. You could either become my concubine or a corpse, and kissing another girl is a no-no.

Unfortunately, the other uninvited guests make things worse, proving once again that no minion should talk without proper guidance.

" _That's so romantic!"_ , Hoshikawa, now awaken, says.

" _Go on, do it, Yuuya!"_ , Sho teases him. _"I'll be laughing at you"_.

" _Shut up, you bastards!"_

He says that, but it looks as if he's seriously considering the option. What a shameless womanizer…

Wait! No, no, I understand now. It's all part of his plan. Clever, very clever.

It's said that the opposite of love is not hate, but indifference, and that there's a fine line between hate and love. At first, he appears as the stereotypical bad boy, the kind a girl like me would desire for some quick fun. But instead of trying to please me, he infuriates me with his 'Metchin' and his general lack of respect. He even loses on purpose to make me feel both contempt and pity. A cocktail of emotions. However, before I can write him off, he proves himself an intelligent and capable man. She's playing cat and mouse with me. So what's the next logical step? Make me jealous with another woman.

Yep, this must be. It explains everything! But now that I know the truth, I won't be taken in by your seductive stratagems. Go on, Yuuya. Kiss her. I don't care.

…

I'm being serious. Very serious. Honestly. To prove how little I care, I'll distract myself for a bit with infodump.

" _Altair's Existence Coefficient is almost zero"_ , I explain to the people in the control room. _"I think that we can safely say that Altair has been swallowed up by Sirius, just as we planned"._

Everyone cheers. To my disappointment, instead of showering me with praise, they commend Mr. Matsubara. However, Selesia's author doesn't seem pleased.

" _I created that character just for this. As her Creator, it's not something I'm proud of"_.

Understandable, really. I mean, he used the designs we stole from a dead teenager and made a character that was a blatant copy of an existing one. There's more creative fanfiction out there. Heck, didn't the authors bash "secondary creations" when we discussed Altair's identity several months ago? Pretty ironic, if you ask me.

Oh, Sirius has finally opened her eyes. Did Yuuya kiss her? (I don't mind, I don't mind, I don't mind…). She looks confused and doesn't seem to know where she is, but beyond that she seems in top-notch condition.

" _Hey"_ , Yuuya greets her, but she ignores him (must be a lousy kisser, then). He's going to say something, but then he gets a call from Kikuchihara.

" _Mirokuji, how is Sirius?"_

" _She doesn't even talk"_ , Grasshopper Glasses points out. _"Is she okay?"_

Kikuchihara repeats the lie about Sirius missing a personality. For a moment, I fear that Yuuya may notice my ruse, but he accepts the theory at face value. From his point of view, she's a doll that was created just to defeat Altair. Despite our victory, the method doesn't make him very happy. Altair's absorption was effective, but also cruel and disturbing.

" _I never thought that you guys would actually create a character like that"_ , Yuuya comments. Does he sound… disappointed?

" _Yeah. This was the only way"_ , I admit.

" _I'm not trying to blame you"_ , he adds quickly. _"I just didn't expect it"_.

Slowly, Yuuya rejoins the rest of the group, while a still dazzled Sirius explores the scenery. Hoshikawa wonders about what will happen to them, Kanoya is sure that I'll manage to send them back to their own universes (good, good, praise my intelligence!) and Blitz says he wouldn't mind too much if he can't go back. He already has what he wanted, after all.

This is the end of the adventure, they think. They are wrong.

I haven't released the Birdcage yet. Why should I? The acceptance level is at its highest. The energy of millions of viewers, focused on the grand finale. Naturally, we could leave things like this. Altair is defeated, the world is saved. A happy ending for all, except for those who died in the process. But what if we added a plot twist? Like the Big Good of the team revealing herself as the true Final Boss?

I'm talking about me, of course.

What? Did you think I'd forget my evil plan? Not at all! This is the perfect moment to strike. I'll teleport myself inside the Birdcage and explain how everything that happened was part of my master plan to become Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse (minus a few bumps, but they've been smoothed out). Audiences love diabolical masterminds, after all. And then it would be nice if they give me a final battle worthy of my ascension. The remaining Creations are a joke, but as Altair said, entertaining the viewers is the only thing that matters. The JSDF may try to do something then, but now that I have the power to summon war machines, they can't hope to match my forces. With Sirius at my beck and call, I'm the most powerful overlord this world have ever seen. In fact, I probably have more firepower than the evil overlord of my world. When everyone is crushed, their hopes destroyed, the audience in awe of my might, then I will have all the ingredients to become an omnipotent being. I just need the viewers to accept it for just one moment and fantasy will become reality.

Yes, yes, what a tragic twist. Their beloved ally, a villain all along. I can't wait to see the despair in their faces.

How should I make my entrance? Laughing maniacally the moment I appear? No, too shabby. What about killing one of them right after teleporting myself inside the Birdcage? Yes, that sounds much better. No, wait! I have a better idea: I'll order Sirius to murder one of them and, when everyone wonders what the hell is happening, I'll appear and start infodumping them, explaining how stupid they've been to trust me and how my plan is the cleverest plan ever created. Yes, yes, that's perfect.

Now, it's only a matter of choosing the perfect victim for Sirius. Yuuya… Mm, I still need to know if he was playing around or not. Blitz? He's been weak to blackmail before, he could be convinced to join my side. That leaves us Sho, Hoshikawa, Kanoya… Decisions, decisions.

Suddenly, a flying sword stabs Yuuya's back.

" _Yuuya!"_ , his rival and potential gay lover shouts.

Before anyone can react, Grasshopper Glasses is impaled by two more swords. The punk is vomiting blood, but he still has the instinct to summon his female samurai ghost to block the next two blades and send her against the culprit: Sirius.

WTF? I know I wanted her to kill one of them! But not now! I hadn't decided yet! Why did she do it? Did I give her an order without noticing? And why Yuuya? Oh, my, this must be some of those Freudian subconscious slips I've heard so much about. Ugh, nevermind, I'll have to start my plan with this. Now, Sirius, stop.

…

Stop. Stop, stop, stop! Her red shockwave has erased Yuuya's ghost. This is not what I planned! Why isn't she obeying my commands? Why is she wearing Altair's hat? And why is she smiling like Altair?

No. No, no, no, this can't be happening. It's impossible!

" _NO WAY!"_ , Kikuchihara screams.

I check the numbers of my machine again. The numbers never lie. And the numbers tell me that Altair isn't in this world anymore.

" _Her Existence Coefficient is zero. That's not really Altair! I thought that Sirius..."_

Eerily, the woman that was supposed to be my puppet answers my question, as if she could hear my voice from inside the Birdcage:

" _Do you mean that you thought that woman over there was Sirius?"_

Oh, gods. Her eyes. Those crazy red kaleidoscopic eyes, instead of Sirius' lifeless gray-blue ones. And it's not just her eyes. With a gesture of her hand, she changes her clothes to be closer to that hideous black military uniform, but without losing Sirius' style.

" _Well, my friends, I have returned. I feel like I've been born again"_ , Altair gloats.

Oh, shit. We're doomed.

00000

There is chaos inside and outside the Birdcage. Everyone in the control room, including me, is stunned. How is this possible? Sirius ate her! We won! WHY? To add insult to injury, the audience goes "oooooh" and starts cheering for her. For her! The omnicidal maniac! What does she have that I don't?

I mean, just look at us. I'm a famous NPC from a video game behemoth, while she's just a fan creation that became popular. I have the support of the government and the biggest corporations in Japan, while she just has a handful allies she managed to convince on her own. My powers have been augmented in a plot carefully orchestrated by a team of professional writers and published throughout the media, whereas she has to rely on the crazy abilities invented by random fans and her own creativity. I cleverly let others fight my fights, while she's always on the front line. My secret plan is to achieve the ultimate power and rule over everything, whereas hers is to destroy everything to avenge her bullied Creator who killed herself. And more importantly, my exposition appeals to logic and facts, while hers appeals to emotion.

No matter how you look at it, I'm obviously the superior villain.

But seriously, how is this happening? Didn't our authors agree that their original, complex narratives would not lose against a one-dimensional meme like Altair? Yatoji asks the same question:

" _Why? We had everything covered! Down to the last detail! Our plan was perfect!"_

" _It wasn't enough"_ , Mr. Nakanogane says. _"Sirius, the character we created, didn't have enough information compared to Altair. We were able to get the audience to accept her enough to get her to appear in this world, but we couldn't dig deep enough to flesh out the character's personality"._

Although it pains me to admit it, he's right. In hindsight, Altair had enjoyed many months of online popularity even before she appeared in this world. Most of it came from stupid videos, devoid of any real narrative quality. But as the saying goes, quantity has a quality all its own.

" _Altair took advantage of that. Altair was almost at the point of having her existence overwritten. She slipped into one of the possibilities for Sirius and took over her"_ , I point out.

" _We underestimated her"_ , Matsubara confesses. _"Altair doesn't have a background story either. That's why I thought we'd be able to pull it off. Darn!"_

Suddenly, Altair calls my name:

" _Meteora. No, it's not just you. Your dirty little trick just now must have been the Creators' idea. Can you hear me?"_

Everyone can notice that her tone hides a barely contained poison. She hates me. She was looking down on me before, but now she knows that I was able to almost turn her into my slave. I really hope she destroys the world in an instant, because if she takes her time, I know I'm the first in her torture list.

Fortunately, she manages to remain calm. She's still playing the ringmaster role for the audience's entertainment.

" _I'm different from the other characters here"_ , she explains. _"I don't belong to any story. However, that's exactly why my dear friend gave me an endless story. She gave me an everlasting universe of freedom. Even if I don't belong anywhere, it's a universe that extracts desires without limit and lays emotions bare. It's a fragmented piece of poetry. My existence is sustained by the infinite number of Creators who add to this poem. The power of Creation gets handed off to someone. That person feel s it and thinks about it. Then those thoughts give birth to the power of Creation again. It's emotion. It's passion gone mad"_.

He. Now I'm reminded of all those times when our Creators talked about how great original content was, and how secondary creations and fanworks couldn't really measure up to them. Now she's telling us they were wrong. No shit Sherlock. But her last jab is for me:

" _Clever logic is nothing but a slave to emotion. Even though you're caught up in the middle of a storm of emotions, you underestimated its power. That's why you lost"_.

Sigh. This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang but an infodump.

By the way, it's literally the end of the world. The JSDF is already detecting several disturbances in the magnetic field. The Birdcage is cracking. Once our virtual reality is no more, Altair will be free to exert her power on the world. The laws of the universe will be thrown into chaos. And reality will collapse.

Sho tries to stop Altair, but he fails hard. She's stronger than ever. And she's noticing that our trap can't contain her any longer.

" _The cracks have begun to grow. Let's go on the final journey together. The audience is waiting"._

Indeed. The cameras and even my own machine confirm that the viewers are enjoying the show a lot. This is what they want? An overpowered villain winning? No, not a villain. She is the hero. Hoshikawa sums it up:

" _If this is really a story, then we've already come to the end, right? You've overcome many challenges and defeated many enemies who stood in your way. And you've defeated your strongest enemy. You're about to fulfill the promise you made to the person you like. The hero that the audience chose isn't us. It's you"._

Well, then the audience's taste is garbage. They deserve being erased.

At this point, Blitz is the only minion left who can face Altair. Without his robot, Kanoya is useless. Without her martial arts, Hoshikawa is worse than useless. Sho and Yuuya are injured. If the old detective can't do anything about it, we're all going to die.

00000

" _Meteora!"_

Who's calling for me? Oh, it's Souta. He's just entered the control room. Where have you been all this time? I wanted food and a cup of coffee.

He seems agitated. If he's been watching the show with the rest of the audience, he's probably realized that he won't become by future Minister of Snacks. Mostly, because everything will disappear. I know, I know, Souta. I'm upset too.

Then he says something I didn't expect:

" _Use the spell! This is the end!"_

Spell? What spell is he talking ab…? Oh! That spell! The script he provided for the Elimination Chamber Festival. His personal contribution to the show.

Honestly, I never intended to use it. Don't get me wrong, it's not as if I put Matsubara's or Nakanogane's writing skills far above Souta's. Pop culture authors can only do so much. But Souta's script has two main weaknesses. First, it's incredibly naive. Seriously, it's full of fluff. Which could be nice in another setting, but the very point of the Elimination Chamber Festival was to create the biggest stick ever to hit Altair with it. Attacking her with "feels" is stupid. The second weakness, related to that, is that it doesn't fit with the rest of the show. For the love of me, we wanted action! Explosions! People dying! Not My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. I love asspulls who benefit me as much as any other villain, but without the audience's acceptance, we can't do it.

" _The character does have a small Existence Probability, but we won't be able to get the audience to accept this character"_ , I tell him. _"We haven't gained enough acceptance to get this character to appear in this world"_.

Mr. Nakanogane agrees. He admits that they included this new weapon in the prequel, but all things considered, if we made this character a central part of the plot right now, it would destroy the flow of the story.

" _For Sirius, we put enough foreshadowing into the story"_ , he explains (and we all know what that ended), _"but this character is different"_.

" _I understand"_ , Souta says with determination. _"And I understand that even if we could get this character to appear in this world, it would be useless if we tried to add on any extra details. That's the type of character she is. But..."_

To everyone's surprise, Mr. Matsubara says:

" _That's right. That's exactly why it would be interesting if we made her appear in this world"._

That's desperation doing the talk. The authors start arguing, but in the end, Matsubara's opinion prevails. Our story failed. Does it matter if this new addition goes off the rails? Trying is not going to worsen our situation, because we're at the lowest point already. And as Souta (who has become surprisingly assertive and confident for some reason) points out, what happens is for others to decide. If the audience doesn't like it, we're dead, that's not going to change. But if the audience likes it, we might have a chance. Who knows.

I nod in resignation.

" _This is our last hope. If nothing happens after I use this spell, that will be the moment when we have to face the fact that we must accept the end of the world. I pray that this last piece of straw will become a sword. Although this wish is like hoping for a miracle"._

If there's something I learned from this experience, though, it's that the gods hate my guts, if they exist at all. So I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you.

" _Nogahiel, Acheliah, Socodiah, Nangariel. In the name of the four Holies. The hundred stars ring the sound of thunder. Urge authority. Lead me to the golden base. The silver arrow splits the wedge of fluctuation and brings forth the light of dawn"_.

No reaction. Nothing. The spell isn't working. As I expected, we don't have enough acceptance. He, it's nice to know that I'll die being right about something. Typical me.

A desperate Souta holds on to the pendant of his necklace. Funny, I don't remember him wearing a necklace before.

Wait! Somethin's happening! The machine is lighting up like a Christmas tree. What the…?

Then, Souta's next words give me the chills:

" _A lie about a lie will turn inside out"_.

That's… That's Magane's catchphrase! Souta, why are you using it? Did you sell your soul to the Shark Girl to activate this spell?

So many questions! But no time to ask them. The brightness engulfs everything. The control room, the stadium, the Birdcage. Everything is white. There's nothing but light.

Then there's a railway station.

And there's a girl wearing glasses.

Altair's Creator.

" _Shimazaki Setsuna"_ , I mutter.

This is it. Our last person-shaped bullet. Let's hope Onishi was right about Altair's repressed sexual urges.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

The end is near. Only two episodes left. The episodes are getting longer, because a lot of things are happening and Meteora is witnessing everything. This one was among my favorites for meta reasons.

One thing I didn't like of Re:Creators in the previous episodes was that nobody dared to address the elephant in the room. They planned a big crossover event whose plot was never detailed on screen, a crossover whose Big Bad was a character that didn't belong to anyone (Altair). What was their explanation for that? And their secret weapon was the equivalent of Disney, Fox and other companies banding together to create a copy of Slender Man called "Slender Guy", and insisting that Slender Guy is the real Slender Man now because they made a movie in which the former beats the later. In real life, that would be incredibly controversial. Even more so if Slender Man had been created by a bullied teenage girl who killed herself. Did they even get permission from Setsuna's parents to use her drawings for Sirius? They aren't even mentioned in the series outside Souta's flashback.

As I lampshaded in this fanfic, from time to time Matsubara, Marine and company were surprisingly dismissive of fan creations, and even Altair as a character. At best, condescending _,_ talking as if their Creations were 100% original and not obviously inspired by or related to previous works _(Altair points out in this very episode that's NOT how the process of Creation works)._ At worst, outright criticism, like Suruga's words against Setsuna in episode 17 _(_ _ _"She made the character she created get revenge for her__ _. Is she really an author? That's not what a real story is. That's just some scribbles pretending to be speech"_ ). Guess what? That ends up biting them in the ass. It was Re:Creators' plan all along.

More things:

-Thanks to Nayrael for pointing out Yuuya's secret master plan to woo Meteora (or what Meteora thinks is Yuuya's secret master plan to woo her). Without him, I'd never have realized!

-I've been painting Meteora as a Palpatine-wannabe, and guess what? Palpatine's order to kill the Jedi and Sirius' secret technique to erase Altair share the same number. An unexpected coincidence.


	22. Deus Ex Altair

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 21: DEUS EX ALTAIR**

Everyone is confused. The authors are confused. The soldiers are confused. The audience is confused. Even I am confused. Where did the city inside the Birdcage go? Suddenly, it was transformed into a train station surrounded by a nuclear white void. The most unsettling part is that my machine has gone crazy. The acceptance level readings don't make any sense, or they stop working from time to time. Right now, the viewers could be screaming "cheap asspull", "worst writing ever" or "deus ex machina", but we wouldn't know what effects it could have on the Birdcage.

For the first time since this operation began, I'm lost.

The only one who seems sure of himself is Shouta. He still has that determined look. And he's looking at the scene unfolding before our eyes.

Because Shimazaki Setsuna has just appeared in that creepy station and is facing Altair. The Military Uniform Princess is shaken, to put it politely. It's as if she was a computer and she was getting a stream of error messages in her brain. It's glorious. She can't even put a coherent sentence together.

" _No… No way… You're… You're…!"_

Setsuna smiles.

" _Hello. I'm glad to finally see you again, Altair"._

Altair, on the other hand, doesn't look happy in the slightest. She's panicking. Seriously, she's pointing her sword at Setsuna, to stop her from getting closer, but her arm and her weapon are trembling. I should have expected it. A believer will always fear her Creator's judgment above everything else. And the natural predator of a rebellious brat is her mother.

" _Sorry"_ , Setsuna apologizes. _"I died before I was ever able to call your name. I was so happy"._

After hearing her words, Altair's panic is turning into anger.

" _No… Don't say that! You're… No! You're not Setsuna! There's no way you can be Setsuna! You're not her! Setsuna is… Setsuna is gone now"._

Of course, she's 100% right. The real Setsuna is dead. This one is a fake. We made her. Or perhaps it'd be better to say that Souta did it.

00000

Yes, I have to admit it. Credit where credit is due, this was Souta's brainchild and, at the very least, he made it work. This "Setsuna" looks and sounds like the real deal, even behind that anime filter. Now the future of the universe depends on whether she can talk the monster to death. Because, let's be honest, force isn't going to work anymore. We hit the mutated mop with everything we had and she overcame it all. A scrawny teenage nerd like Faketsuna (from "Fake" and "Setsuna", isn't it brilliant?) isn't going to beat anyone. Even a powerless character like Hoshikawa may be stronger, or at least more resilient. All those sex scenes in her H-Game must have given her lots of endurance.

By the way, before you ask, yes, Hoshikawa and my other minions are there too. A mute audience that is being watched by another audience, who in turn is being watched by us. So meta. In their defense, their faces right now are quite funny. You have Blitz, looking surprised. Hoshikawa, looking curious. Sho, looking defeated. And Grasshopper Glasses, looking like he's bleeding to death. Hilarious.

No, don't laugh right now, Meteora. This is supposed to be a serious moment. And serious moments require exposition. Everyone here is still amazed by what is happening. They need some enlightenment from the person who knows best.

That's me, of course.

" _This character was created by Souta based on her lost memories"_ , I explain. _"Setsuna Shimazaki. I never imagined that Souta would re-create the entire world that surrounded Shimazaki and make that world appear in this world!"_

Seriously, that was beyond suspicious. We weren't supposed to have enough acceptance for Faketsuna to appear, yet not only is she here, but instead of the city now they're all in the train station where she killed herself (I wonder if Souta visited it in the name of guilt-ridden research). Souta's plot overrode everything.

This shouldn't be happening.

…

Hello? Souta? Don't play dumb. My previous words were an obvious hint that you need to answer some pressing questions. Did you think I've forgotten what you did? Using Magane's catchphrase before the plot twist was deployed? That Shark Girl must behind this! So what are you, Souta? A clever minion who took advantage of a psycho? Or a Troyan horse sent by the enemy to undermine our efforts? Probably the latter.

What did she promise you? Gold? Fame? Sex? It had to be sex. She already had Souta look under her skirt; she'd just need to embrace him and whisper in his ear for this virgin high-schooler to overcome his allergy to women and start fantasizing.

This is shameful. Why would she turn to Magane when he can idolize me from afar? I'm as evil as her! What does Magane have that I don't? Thigh-high socks?

…

Ehem. I got carried away. Not that Souta noticed. He doesn't dare to look at me, his eyes focused on the screen.

Down there, Altair's fury is reaching new heights. A sword has just appeared in her hand.

" _That was dirty! That was so dirty! You cowards! How could you do this? How could yo do something so cowardly!"_ , she complains.

" _You're right"_ , Souta says out loud. _"Doing something like this to corner you… What I did was cowardly and dirty. You're right, but it's allowed inside stories. What are you going to do?"_

Wow. He sounded really cool (even if he probably wouldn't be so brave if he was in front of Altair and not speaking from the safety of the control room). He admitted how evil it was of him, and even said that just because he can, it's justified. Forget about Altair, I'm pretty sure that using a person's image like this, for commercial purposes and without permission, is a crime. Even if she's dead. Congratulations, Souta! You've just become a criminal!

Mm, perhaps I should reconsider my previous judgment. This turn to the Dark Side might increase Souta's value as a minion.

Meanwhile, the other people in the room still try to make sense of what they're seeing.

" _She doesn't look like a Creation at all!"_ , Kikuchihara says, a mix of surprise, fascination and horror in her voice.

" _She is a Creation"_ , Mr. Nakanogane assures her. _"People can never come back once they die, but…"_

But it would be very nice, wouldn't it? If only there was a way to turn someone into a godly being that could promise eternal life to their followers in exchange for obedience and adoration… I need to write down these ideas.

00000

Back in the train station, Faketsuna is having similar thoughts.

" _You're right. I did die"_ , she admits, closing her eyes. _"Then, why am I still standing here now? I don't know why. I think it's like a miracle!"_

Phew, for a moment I worried that she would start questioning her existence, imploding in philosophical despair. This proves she's just a Creation. And like all good Creations, she says something very dumb next:

" _If you think I'm not the Setsuna you know, if you're mad that I'm just a fake Setsuna that was created to deceive you, then I don't care what you do with me. I think you have the right to do that"._

NO, YOU IDIOT! Don't throw your life so easily! If she kills you now, she'll kill us all. This is the part where, if it were me in Altair's situation, the fake's head would explode in a million bloody bits. Mostly because I've never cared about my own Creator, truth be told. And sure enough, Altair looks so mad right now that I'm fearing the worst…

...but it doesn't happen?

What the…? The mutated mop has lowered her sword and now seems about to cry?

" _You know I could never do that!"_ , she says. _"Blah, blah, blah, wanted to see you, blah, blah, blah, you were already gone, blah, blah, blah, entrusted all your thoughts, blah, blah, blah, I know why you died, blah, blah, blah, I couldn't do anything for you, blah, blah, blah, I came all this way, blah, blah, blah..."_

I only listened to half of that sob-inducing exposition, but one thing is clear: either she's faking it to gather more approval before she eventually destroys everything, or it's working. We have a chance.

After a bit of hesitation (and when I say "a bit", I mean "are you seriously wasting valuable minutes of MY time in explaining how nervous you are?"), Faketsuna says:

" _I did something really horrible to you. I came here again to apologize to you. That's how I feel. When I finished drawing you, both the good parts and the bad parts, I entrusted you with all my wishes. But if I said those wishes didn't include feelings of hatred towards this world, I would be lying to myself. I guess I couldn't accept it. I didn't want to accept it. I those days… my mind was filled with curses rather than wishes. Because of that, I ended up making you bear the burden of my own curses. Those curses that I made you bear… The one you should be mad at is me, not the world. I was happy about it in the beginning, but it's my fault you spent your life to get revenge for me"_.

Very clever, Souta. The obvious, simple solution would have been to have Setsuna say that she never wanted the world to be destroyed and that Altair was wrong. However, that could have risked a backlash, convincing Altair that she was a fake. But this? This is not Setsuna talking. It's Souta. All my previous pep talks about how guilty he should feel and how to use that guilt as a weapon weren't wasted after all. And did you see all those long lines of exposition? He's definitely learning from the best, the one and only Meteora Österreich!

This is going better than I thought. Altair is trembling. Even the audience is crying.

" _Don't say that!"_ , Altair protests. _"It sounds like you're saying that I never understood you at all. Don't say that. I've never received a curse from you. I chose everything here myself. Setsuna, I know how you felt when you disappeared. More than anyone else. I know your pain more than anyone else. I was born in this world in exchange for that pain! Through your eyes, through your heart, I learned everything!"_

Wow, we did dodge a bullet back there. If Altair was fed all that information and ended up an omnicidal psycho, it might be for the best that we didn't resurrect the real Setsuna. For all we know, her depression and spite were so huge that she'd be the first to cheer on Altair while she destroys the world.

But wait! That bore of Altair hasn't finished her infodump. Geez, so many episodes available to explain her motives and she waits until the end? It's not as if she needed to maintain a facade to deceive a bunch of gullible pawns… Oh, wait, yeah, that was her case too. Sometimes I forget I'm not the only Big Bad who has had to suffer a masquerade.

" _I hated the story that made you leave this world"_ , Altair continues. _"If all those people who are responsible for that, if they're all so unfair that they'd even try to get rid of you, I decided to eliminate the entire system from the root!"_

Statistically speaking, I'm 99.99% sure that the worms who harassed Setsuna are watching this show. Half of Japan is. What an irony. Will they reflect on their actions? Or will they think that these words have nothing to do with them? Probably the latter. In general, humans are blind and foolish creatures, wishfully unaware of their many failings. Thank the universe I'm not like them.

" _I'm the one who created you, but you know me even better than I do"_ , Faketsuna says with a tender smile.

Well, of course. You're based on what Souta could remember of you and the information available on the Internet and the government's records. No wonder the mutated mop knows more about Setsuna than you. Even Altair points it out:

" _I… wanted to walk together with you. Not with fragmented memories of you"._

Suddenly, Faketsuna raises her hand and touches Altair's face. The Military Uniform Princess is shocked and doesn't know how to react.

" _I'm sorry"_ , Faketsuna whispers. _"I'm really weak. I couldn't become strong enough to walk together with you"._

Altair's last barriers crumble. She puts her hands on Faketsuna's shoulders and tries to reassure her. At this point, I'm not sure she knows whether her words are for Setsuna or Faketsuna, or even if she can tell them apart at all. Ha! That's what you get for being emotional, Altair. " _Clever logic is nothing but a slave to emotion", you said? "Passion gone mad", you gloated? Taste your medicine!_

 _Now, Faketsuna! Altair's emotional defenses are down. She's vulnerable. Attack!_

 _"_ _ _You've always been so serious and sincere"__ _, she praises Altair, as a mother talking to her daughter._ _ _"After you became independent from me, you gained strength from many others and changed".__

 _"_ _ _I haven't..."__

 _"_ _ _You're the Altair I created"__ _, Faketsuna interrupts her,_ _ _"but you don't belong only to me anymore. Everyone loved you. That's why you got infinite abilities and invincible powers"__ _._

 _Ugh, don't remind me. To think that a character like the Military Uniform Princess would be so popular… Altair is the first one to point out how sickening that is. Only a species of self-destructive cancerous cells would applaud the catastrophe that is trying to wipe them out._

 _"_ _ _If there's a role I'm supposed to play, then it would be the role of the villain. I'm not the hero"__ _, Altair feels the need to underline the obvious, since her audience doesn't seem to get it._ _ _"I'm trying to obliterate the world, including all those people!"__

" _You might be evil"_ , Faketsuna concedes (understatement of the century). _"A villain that destroys the world. But you're also the king of the weak. The knight of the weak. Many people thought of you in that way. It's not about good and evil. It's not about right or wrong. They accepted your intentions. They accepted who you are as a story and sympathized with you"._

What I said: self-destructive cancerous cells. To think they would side with the villain that tried to kill them all and not with the villain that wanted to enslave them… Terrible, just terrible.

" _Although I was the original creator of your Holopsicon, it's an infinite power that was created by everyone who created you and accepted you. You take my weakness and transform it into strength. That's what your real strength is. People like me who seem too fragile… You give us strength to take one more step in this world. Enduring the world… loving the world… If you feel that you can't forgive the world, you don't need to. You don't need to try to like it. But to hug the whole world once more including everything in it… I think that's what it means to create the world. But in the end I never accomplished it"._

Agh, so fluffy. My sugar levels in blood are increasing like crazy. They're even holding hands now! Altair, I respected you as a rival. To see you be taken in by this fluffy fluff of fluffiness is disgraceful.

And yet, I bite my tongue. This is it. The moment of truth.

I can see Souta's goal. Praise Altair, tell her how awesome she is, and when her ego is sufficiently stroked, remind her that she got her fame and powers thanks to the bugs she detests so much. Even if it's just to bask in the glory of her superior position, who wouldn't want for it to last longer? If it were any other person telling her "hey, the world is not so bad after all, don't destroy it", it would fail. But this is her Creator (and the possible object of her affection and repressed lust) talking and reassuring her that she's totally okay with it. It's not a betrayal if she changes her mind.

So nice. So cute. So dumb.

If defeating Altair with words was possible, we wouldn't have needed this. Not when I have my exposition ready for deployment. We need more drama, a final push. Thankfully, I have the perfect idea in mind.

00000

" _Ding, ding, ding, ding..."_

Everyone freezes. That sound is unmistakable. A train is coming. And everyone knows what it means in this scenario.

Suicide.

" _Her appearance in this world rests on a miracle"_ , I tell Souta and the rest. _"The station building and the platform don't exist in this world, but they appeared in their final states as traced images of themselves. If so, then this will all come to a sudden end"._

Down there, Altair starts panicking, while Faketsuna looks resigned. In the control room, everyone is confused. Especially Souta. He didn't include that part in the script, did he? No, no, that would have been too cruel. His own heart wouldn't have stood the guilt. But he's too distraught to realize the implications.

Because if he didn't write that "sudden end" as part of the plot, it means another person did it. Another person introduced elements in the story that he didn't have in mind. After all, why wouldn't it just dissolve into nothingness, if there was a time limit? Who says there has to be a time limit in the first place, in fact? Who had the last word in adapting the plots into spells? Who chanted those very spells? And who would benefit from twisting the knife in such a cruel manner?

…

It was a rhetorical question. It was me, of course.

In the best case scenario, this will make Altair realize the emptiness of her cause. How can she presume to avenge Shimazaki Setsuna if she's unable to stop her demise once again? Because she will fail. This time we're not fighting her, just telling a story. And both she and the audience know that Setsuna is destined to die like a bug splashed against the windshield. Since Magane deigned to give us this "miracle" that enforces our tale regardless the acceptance level, not even Altair will be able to break it. A pity we didn't have it when Sirius was around; that damn Shark Girl surely chose her moment wisely. Who knows, the mutated mop might even kill herself! That would be the happiest way to end this train-wreck.

In the worst case scenario, though, Faketsuna's death will make Altair resume the destruction of the world, in a bloody orgy of hate and despair. A serious risk, but one that I'm willing to take.

Yes, I know, I'm very evil. Thank you for noticing. When this ends, and if we survive, I need to exchange notes with Ms. Suruga.

00000

In the train station, Faketsuna walks to her impending doom. She tries to resist with all her might, but the power of the plot is too strong. Before getting into position, though, she turns to Altair once more and gives her a tender smile. Because that wasn't in the script, her body is blurred in a cloud of blue pixels. Faketsuna and the whole station disappear for a moment, before going back. I suppose that even a fake can defy destiny, if only for a millisecond.

But destiny is coming right now.

" _Passengers on platform 1, please watch your step. A train will pass. Please stand behind the yellow line"_ , a recorded voice announces.

Altair looks to the incoming train, then to Faketsuna. Even in her last moments, the glasses girl tries to comfort the Military Uniform Princess.

" _I might have put a curse on you, but I'm really glad I was able to draw you in this world. I was happy to find out that everyone loves you. I'm glad that I was able to tell you this. I... really like you too"_.

And then she jumps. In slow motion, because drama.

(Is it me or did it almost sound like a love confession? Well done, Faketsuna, make it more tragic!).

"SETSUNA!", Altair cries.

To everyone's surprise, the Military Uniform Princess jumps to stop the train. She attacks her with her swords, but no matter how fast she destroys it, the train rebuilds itself faster. Realizing this, Altair summons Holopsicon again.

" _Holopsicon, the Twenty-Third Movement: Fate Reconstruction!"_

Oh. That's definitely more effective. She isn't trying to destroy the train, but to erase it from the very plot. Ha! Good try, but as we are now, there's no way it can…

...work? These numbers… No, this cannot be!

" _Acceptance…"_ , I mutter. My voice is trembling in horror. _"No… The audience's emotions are directly linked to Altair's power and are making its strength change!"_

Damn you, you cheating mop! The point of this "miracle" was that our tale would triumph regardless of acceptance (I didn't plan for it, true, but still), but now you can break it too with the power of the audience? Go to hell!

No, no, control yourself, Meteora. Altair hasn't destroyed the script yet. She's trying to reach Faketsuna, but the train is still advancing. Come on, Train-kun! You can do it!

" _I was able to see you again!"_ , Altair cries. _"I'm not the same person you used to know anymore. You might not be the same person I used to know either. But still, we were able to see each other again!"_

These 0.5 seconds are the longest ever. Time is relative indeed.

" _No, Altair!"_ , Faketsuna tries to stop her. _"I'm here because I bent the most important rule in the world! If things stay like this, everything will be over!"_

YES! This is even better than I could have hoped for! If Altair wishes to share Setsuna's fate, so be it. Run over both of them, Train-kun! May your plot device end this circus once and for all!

" _I won't let that happen!"_ , Altair shouts. She tells Faketsuna: _"I'm going to create your story! Your story that's been cut short! You gave me the power of the Holopsicon. Twisting fate isn't the only thing it can do. It can create something from nothing! An infinite power! You created me, that means I can create worlds too!"_

What. Did. She. Say.

Altair grabs Faketsuna's hand. And the whole world disappears again in a ball of light. The screens stop working and an eerie sound fills the waves.

Kikuchihara asks me something, but I don't even register it. I can only think of what Altair said.

And I fear the worst.

00000

The brightness disappears. The train station is no more. The landscape changes. A surface of water, reflecting the stars of the night sky like a mirror. A shallow lake, surrounded by dark mountains in the horizon. In the middle, Altair and Faketsuna lie down, looking at each other like mother and daughter… or like something significantly lewder.

Wait, what happened to the rest? Blitz, Hoshikawa, Grasshopper Glasses…? Are they dead?

No, no, it seems they're okay. They've been forcefully ejected from the scenario, but their vital signs are still appearing on our computers. I should feel relieved, but a sense of dread is creeping me out. Altair's and Faketsuna's next words don't help:

" _Passion and despair. Bad wishes and good wishes. They were all contained in that moment. And then the story takes root in someone's heart and changes that person's world. That's right, isn't it, Setsuna?"_

" _Yes. Even though it's small, it will grow into something very beautiful. But creating the story is lonely. It's just like leaving a scar on yourself and the world, a mark that proves you existed there"._

Altair smiles tenderly.

" _But that's how you created me. If your existence causes this world to become warped, then I'll create another universe for you in another world, in another story. Forever, this time, as long as you want. And you will write my story in the story that I will create. You and I will create an infinite story, an infinite world"_.

I so want to pull my hair out. This is… This is the worst! Is she saying that she'll get the infinite power I've craved for so long?

The scholar in me is actually impressed. Now that I look at her plan from that point of view, it's very sensible. Creations depend on their Creators, a fundamental weakness. But this Faketsuna has taken the place of the real one in the social imaginary. She can work as Altair's Creator, powering her up as long as she exists. Of course, she was supposed to die in our plot, but the Military Uniform Princess has become so powerful that she can protect her in her own story, and make new ones as needed. And because it was done by playing with and subverting the laws of the world, the universe can't do anything to stop them. The last boundaries of reality have been broken: the Creation becomes the Creator, the Creator becomes the Creation. The twin-headed face of… of…

No, I don't want to say it. I don't want to hear it.

Unfortunately, Faketsuna doesn't have such qualms:

" _Are you saying to become gods… you and I?"_

Altair nods.

" _If it's you and I… we'll be fine"_.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

WHY? Why do you keep subverting all my plans? Why do you keep destroying my dreams?

You have so many things I wished for myself. Infinite abilities supplied by a legion of mindless fans. The power to break across the worlds and summon new minions. I tried to use my superior brains to best you, but was I doomed to failure from the beginning?

I managed to recruit an army against you, and even turn those who followed you against your cause, but you prevailed and had my beloved first minion killed. I managed to gather an audience to overpower your infinite abilities through sheer brute force, but you made them sympathize with you instead. I was given this final chance to break your spirit, and yet you transformed it into the right path to godhood. It was MY dream, not yours! You wanted to destroy the world! And now you get the girl, the omnipotence and the chance to create your own multiverse? THIS IS NOT FAIR!

I don't… I can't…!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAADFHSFDIU9`349UVGFDIPbj5V9"$b93N365JBH3`9UB/^^^*o`po*^Djssewcfk.¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨kdsfnlkjvb!E%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

…

404: METEORA'S BRAIN NOT FOUND

…

DO YOU WANT TO REBOOT THE SYSTEM? Y/N

00000

Everything is ash.

I don't remember how long I was out. I remember standing in the control room, but that's it. By the time I returned to my senses, everything had finished. Altair and Faketsuna had disappeared, and the screen showed a pretentious Latin phrase: _"Mundum divit factum, atque pulchre"_. If you want to know what it means, buy a dictionary.

Everything is ash.

I was told it was poetic, and beautiful, and that it probably would be banned in Russia and other countries. Not that I care.

Everything is ash.

I also remember the presenters thanking everyone in the audience and saying goodbye. The sun was rising and it was high time to get back home, over six o'clock in the morning.

Everything is…

…

Wait, six in the morning? Didn't we start it in the evening? How long was I out? Guys? Anyone?

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

The climax, at last! A Big Bad is defeated, and the hero gets the girl. Happy ending! Except for Meteora, that's it.

There's still one episode left, the epilogue of the story. However, that one will take a bit longer. I'm going to be busy in August, so I won't be able to finish it until September. But don't worry, you'll be able to see how it ends in a couple of months, promise.

-Souta was as surprised as the rest by the train's sudden appearance. Meaning, it wasn't part of his script, so I decided to turn it into a plot point. It actually works very well with Meteora's words and expressions.

-In basically the last half of the episode, we can see Meteora but not her face. She probably broke at that point XD

-Train-kun is, obviously, a homage to the legendary Truck-kun, plot device extraordinaire.


	23. I'll Be Back

**Disclaimer:** This is fanwork based on the anime Re:Creators by Troyca. Its setting, characters and plot belong to their rightful creators. I write this only for fun and as a little writing experiment.

* * *

 **EPISODE 22: I'LL BE BACK**

The sun rises. The credits roll. The Elimination Chamber Festival has ended. And with it, my hopes and dreams.

The Military Uniform Princess won. She overcame all my clever plans and traps, she overpowered my army of dupes and traitors, she gained the sympathy of the gods of pleasure, and she achieved the godhood that was supposed to be mine. At this very moment, she's probably creating new worlds or having hot lesbian sex with Faketsuna. Or both.

That should have been me! The goddess, I mean, not the one having hot lesbian sex. Not that there's anything wrong with that, mind you. I mean, I'm not especially interested, but if it was someone like Princess Tomato, perhaps I…

Oh, now I remember. She's dead. Forget I said anything.

On the bright side, I'm alive. No small feat. For a moment, I thought that the entire multiverse was about to be destroyed. As long as there is life, no defeat is final. As long as I have my magic, my wits and my pawns, I can start again.

And talking about pawns…

While everyone is crying or smiling, I get off the machine and approach Ms. Kikuchihara.

" _You succeeded in saving the world"_ , I say.

At first, Kikuchihara looks at me with a dumbfounded expression. Surely, she realizes that her role was minimal during this crisis. She was a lackey in a management position. Nothing more. Even Souta was more useful. Why would anyone give her credit for our survival?

But I've talked enough times to her to know that she's always wanted to be a heroine. To save the world for real instead of being another cog in the bureaucratic machine. She's my direct link to the Japanese government; telling her what she wants to hear is a small price to pay to keep her gullible and loyal.

First, we shake hands (I go as far as taking my glove off! So generous of me not to worry about her germs!). Then, she hugs me. Such an emotional response. Evidently, my words have moved her.

Excellent.

In the meantime, my other pawns rush to praise Souta for his work. Without his scenario, we'd probably be dead. Nobody mentions the elephant in the room, though: that he probably betrayed us to Magane, the Shark Girl. His words before the acceptance for his plot skyrocketed… Yeah, I still don't have proof, but I'm going to have a very serious chat with him once the circus is over.

" _I said your story was interesting, remember? What you created was amazing"_ , Mr. Matsubara says while patting him in the back. _"It's something none of us were able to do. Be proud. Very proud"._

Mr. Matsubara gets out of the room, still smiling.

You know, for a person who saw his two main Creations, basically his children, kill each other on live TV, Mr. Matsubara is quite cheerful. Too cheerful, in fact. I wonder where he's going…

Oh, no.

Mr. Matsubara, don't do it! You were the first Creator who succeeded at rewriting. Your plots in the crossover gave me power beyond my wildest dreams. You could have been the key to my divine ascension, if a certain twin-tailed menace hadn't stolen the show. You can't die, Mr. Matsubara!

Not until I've found a proper replacement, that is.

00000

" _Selesia!"_ , Mr. Matsubara weeps.

It didn't take long for Ms. Marine and I to find Mr. Matsubara. He's crying in a corner, too close to an open balcony for comfort. As expected, he blames himself for his character's demise.

" _It's all because I made the story like this!"_

Honestly, he's not wrong. Princess Tomato always showcased that naive self-sacrificing heroic syndrome because he wrote her that way. And the less we talk about how he turned Charon into a depressed edgelord, the better.

However, if I told him the naked truth, he would break. I can't risk it.

" _If you had written the story differently, saving the world wouldn't have been a part of our destiny. Everything comes full circle. The inevitable returns to where it belongs"_ , I tell him.

…

Yeah, I don't understand what I'm saying either.

" _And you're alive"_ , I point out. _"That is the most important thing"_.

Not surprisingly, Mr. Matsubara is unimpressed by my poor attempt at psychological counseling.

" _Is it important? This is so stupid"._

Thankfully, Marine comes to the rescue.

" _Matsubara! Selesia will continue to exist! And Takarada's Alicetaria too!"_

Nice thinking, Ms. Marine! Indeed, as long as this world continues to exist, Mr. Matsubara can keep writing new stories to his heart's content. Including Selesia's. There's just one little problem, and I can't help but be honest with him:

" _The Selesia that came to this world lost her life. But that's only the end of one of the many possible branches. Matsubara, the Selesia in the stories that you'll write in the future will never have the chance to meet us. However, her willpower and thoughts will remain the same. As long as you write her story that way"._

At this point, I almost expect Mr. Matsubara and Ms. Marine to call my bluff. Didn't we and the government already agree that us, Creations, are our own people? That we are persons with human rights? _Our_ Selesia was a unique being, not a mere reproduction of a Platonic Ideal. The Selesia of the novels remains a blank, a piece of paper devoid of reality. No matter how much Mr. Matsubara writes, she'll never be the Princess Tomato we knew and lov… we knew and magnanimously tolerated.

But if he needs to believe in a replacement goldfish to keep working…

" _I want you to keep your promise to her. Give her world stories and coffee"_ , I remind him. _"And this time, let Selesia live to the end of the story, together with Charon"._

What about the other characters? Don't worry, they're secondary. Literally. They exist so that the heroes can feel sad when they die. Just… Don't get carried away. Last time you made a hero miserable, he joined the Big Bad. No, not me (I wish). The other Big Bad.

Finally, the shadow of a smile crosses Matsubara's face.

" _I see. I made a promise. You're right"_.

And thus, another crisis was averted thanks to Meteora's clever manipulation of the feeble human mind. Go me!

00000

Days pass. The Elimination Chamber Festival ended up as a commercial success. The audience was huge, and both the government and the corporations involved made a profit thanks to all the advertising and merchandising. All the important people were very happy with the result.

The rabble, on the other hand, had a different opinion.

Oh, yeah, you should have seen the Internet the day after the show. People talking of "deus ex machina" and "asspulls", moaning about plots being spoiled, issuing death threats against the creators behind the Elimination Chamber Festival… You know, the usual. If only they knew the truth!

No, scratch that. Given the current state of humanity, if we told them that their lives were saved thanks to that "disappointing" crossover, they'd still find a way to complain. "Well, yeah, you stopped the end of the world, but perhaps you could have done it with better dialogues? And the battle scenes were crap."

Sigh.

Now that we don't have a common goal anymore, my fellow Creations have become a liability. Not only for me, but for this world. We've seen enough to know that the authorities won't like a group of superpowered individuals going around unchecked. And that includes me.

It's time for my next plan.

00000

" _Metchin, I have no idea what you're trying to say"._

Damn Grasshopper Glasses! No matter how many times he's seen death face to face, Yuuya's manners haven't improved one bit. Still, I suppose he's right to complain in this case.

It's difficult to vocalize when you have your mouth stuffed with delicious food.

We're all in a small, traditional restaurant. When I say "all", I mean "all Creations". I insisted that no Creator or normal human was invited. I need to have these fools convinced before I take another step. At first it was all drinking and eating and having fun, but now it's time to get serious.

" _The reason I've gathered you here today is to tell you that we have to go back using the appr_ opriate spell while the aftereffects of the collision of worlds still remain", I explain after gulping down my food. _"The tremors in the world have begun to converge. My Magic Book's search range is shrinking day by day. We don't have much time left"._

All lies, of course. My Magic Book is perfectly fine. But hey, if they accepted my theory on the collision of the worlds without having any scientific data to prove it, why can't it work again? If they point out that their own powers haven't been reduced in the slightest, I have more infodump prepared to confuse them.

However, it seems it won't be necessary. Not because they're convinced, no, but because they're so focused on their food that they aren't paying attention.

I frown.

" _Are you listening to what I'm saying?"_

Nope. To add insult to injury, the waitress comes with more food.

" _Excuse me"_ , I tell her. _"I'll have an extra pork-and-egg special. Double size"._

If you can't beat them…

After several more hours of eating and drinking, I finally tell them my egregious theory and why it's imperative that we go back to our respective worlds. I argue that, if we don't return, the laws of the universe will react against us.

Although concerned, they're all surprisingly okay with the plan. Yuuya and Sho want to go back home and kill an old man. Kanoya and Hoshikawa have lovers waiting for them. And Blitz wants to get away from his Creator as soon as possible.

However, I suspect that there is still a lot of unfinished business for most of them.

" _Is there anything you want to do before you go back? Anything you haven't told your Creator?"_ , I ask them. _"I recommend that you wrap up your business within the next few days"._

I'll take my own advice. My Creator is dead (not that I care), but I have to talk to another Creator. Perhaps the tale about my impending disappearance will loosen his tongue.

00000

" _Souta, I still wonder about it"._

We're alone in the cemetery, Souta and I. We're here to pay our respects to Setsuna's tomb. Well, he is. It was him who decided to violate her image rights and create a fictional Setsuna. Fortunately, the authorities and the media used all their power to silence her family and kill the lawsuit before it could become a reality, so he's safe. For now.

His answers to my questions will determine whether he sees another day.

" _Why was she able to appear in this world?"_

He stops praying, but doesn't turn around. He knows what I'm talking about. The plot, the acceptance, the spell… They weren't enough to summon Faketsuna. There was something else. I think I know what it was, but I want to hear the truth from his lips.

After a moment, he takes something from his pocket. A pyrite necklace

" _I cheated a bit"_ , he admits. _"I thought that, with my skill level, it wouldn't have been possible to bring Shimazaki back. Even now, this is something that I feel disappointed about"._

" _The only thing that Magane's powers did was to twist the acceptance that was needed for Shimazaki to appear in this world"_ , I rationalize.

He doesn't flinch when he hears Magane's name. He even relaxes a bit. The cat is out of the bag. But he shouldn't feel (too) bad. In the end, as much as it pains me to say it, he did the right thing.

" _If we hadn't brought back Setsuna, then our plan would have failed. Do you understand, Souta? You were able to successfully draw a version of Shimazaki Setsuna that Altair, her ego, accepted. That's why the world was able to reach the end of the story. I think that the person who appeared in this world was actually… No, I'll stop here. Everything is over now."_

Everything but Magane. She's still on the loose. A murderous psycho with reality-warping powers. The Japanese government has issued warnings to all the intelligence and police agencies in the world, but I doubt they'll be able to catch her.

Nevertheless, that's a problem for later. For now, I have to take care of my own loose ends.

00000

" _Gate of the Occult. Bell of Hebos. The footsteps of Mercurius echo and reach the infinite sea"._

As always, my chant is gibberish. As always, it works. A giant blue portal is materialized in the middle of the airport.

" _You successfully summoned the Gate of Return"_ , Kikuchihara says.

Geez, Kikuchihara, did you feel the need to state the obvious? Everybody can see the gate, you know. We're not blind. Physically, at least. Metaphorically, on the other hand…

" _The spell went smoothly. However, considering the amount of Restorative Power in the world, today is probably our last chance"._

Everyone is here. Everyone except Mr. Takarada, that is. Poor Alicetaria's Creator still can't get over the fact she died and now he feels depressed. I'm also surprised to see Mr. Yatoji here. I almost expected Grasshopper Glasses and Sho to beat him senseless and throw his body into an incinerator before going back. I guess that when they said they were taking him for a "final goodbye", it wasn't a euphemism.

" _Begin the transport"_ , Kikuchihara orders.

Kanoya and his giant robot are the first to cross the gate. He goes out with a smile. The same for Grasshopper Glasses and his not-boyfriend. Proud and defiant to the end.

You know, I'm actually amazed, amazed that people could walk to their own deaths so easily.

I'm the most intelligent person in the whole planet and I still don't know how the transference between worlds works. We all have memories of our original worlds, but are those worlds real?

In the best case scenario, this mundane world might have spawned an actual multiverse influenced by the power of imagination. After all, if the universe is made of information, couldn't the same apply to fictional universes? Or perhaps Altair was so powerful that she literally created avatars of our worlds for her to use, and my spell is merely recreating them.

In the worst case scenario, we are mere avatars, the only part of our worlds that is real. By crossing the Gate, we become information again and disappear into nothingness. Or worse, we fuse with our fictional counterparts, trapped forever in a deterministic reality where our actions, our words and our thoughts are forever set in stone by the cold hand of narrative fate.

It's a huge risk. The implications are staggering. And yet, nobody has questioned it. It was enough to mention the "collision of worlds" for everyone to agree that this was the best solution. Did anybody point out that Altair had to violate the laws of reality really hard before the universe fought back? Did anybody wonder if the effects of the collision might be safer than crossing the Gate?

No, of course not. Thus, if they disappear, it's not my fault.

When it's Hoshikawa's turn, though, Onishi tries to stop her.

" _Hikayu!"_ , he shouts, tears flowing down his cheeks. He crashes against the portal and gets shocked by its energy. _"Ow! Ow! Hot! Hot!"_

Everyone sighs, including Hoshikawa.

" _Onishi, you always act like this"_ , she says and proceeds to scold him.

I hear snickers around me. I can almost hear them thinking: "That pervert, always trying to get into a teenager's panties. When will he grow up?". And yet, I suspect that his distress is more serious than it seems.

Because, despite my previous words, I must admit some misgivings about the transference were voiced in the past.

Kanoya, of all people, was the first. He wanted to know if he could take all the souvenirs he had bought to his world. I assured Mr. Nakanogane that, as long as he wrote them into his story, the stupid toys would be there.

Then it was Mr. Onishi's turn. When Nakanogane told him about Kanoya's souvenirs, the pervert objected that my explanation was just a hypothesis and likened it to the multiverse theory. He asked many questions: was the transference going to connect back to the original story? Would a new story branch be created? Or would they merge? Yeah, that pervert is surprisingly insightful when he wants to.

Fortunately, because of his infamy, nobody took his questions seriously. And now he has to watch dumbfounded and speechless while his colleagues laugh at him and his beloved Creation crosses the gate towards a very, very uncertain future.

What a cruel fate.

But he may not be the only one with questions in mind. I think both Ms. Suruga and Blitz suspect the true dangers of this operation. She taunts him:

" _You can stay if you like"_.

" _I don't want to live in the same world as you"_ , he retorts.

Yep, now I'm 99% certain that they know. Still, Blitz's hate runs deep. Better die than be killed, I guess.

Now it's my turn.

" _Meteora is the last one"_ , Mr. Nakanogane points out.

" _I'm going to feel lonely after this"_ , Marine says.

" _Meteora"_ , Souta mutters with puppy eyes, _"I don't know what to say, but when I think about not being able to see you again..."_

Yes, yes, I know, guys and gals. I'm the center of your lives. You can't possibly live without me.

" _We can see each other anytime, Souta"_ , I tell him.

" _You're right. Anytime I play AVALKEN, you'll be there"_.

" _No, that's not what I meant. To put it simply, I can't go back again"_.

Don't act surprised, you lot. Did you really think I was going to risk my very being by crossing the gate? Ha! As if. The risk is too high and, honestly, even if everything went as I promised, it's not as if I want to go back. I had a dull life in an ivory tower at the end of the world, surrounded by idiots, threatened by a great evil, and receiving the occasional visit of those wandering sociopaths called "adventurers". AVALKEN was hell. A comfy hell, but hell nonetheless.

Also, they don't have hamburgers or refreshments. And that's terrible.

The Creators are either shocked or concerned. The only one who looks happy is Mr. Onishi. Either he lusts after my luscious body, or he's realized that at least one of us Creations is choosing safety over vague promises.

As for Kikuchihara, she stays calm. I've already talked to her about my situation.

" _To tell you the truth, we did multiple rehearsals with Meteora"_ , she tells the Creators. _"But in order to cast the spell, the person casting it must be on the outside. In other words..."_

Mr. Nakanogane realizes the implications immediately.

" _You can't send yourself back?"_

" _It would be like trying to grab and throw myself. There was no alternative. The Restorative Power of the world was too strong"._

Lies. All lies, of course.

After all, didn't the Military Uniform Princess cross the worlds herself time and again? If this was such a serious problem, I could have asked them to write a similar spell for my Magic Book. And yet, I stayed silent and waited until every other Creation was out of the picture. What a convenient "sacrifice", isn't it? But they'd never doubt the saintly Meteora Österreich.

Heck, Souta looks devastated. My gullible Minister of Snacks probably thinks it pains me terribly not to be able to go back home.

" _It's not a problem"_ , I assuage his fears. _"I love this world. And if I'm unable to return anyway, I want to try creating a world, just like everyone else here. That's what I'm thinking"._

Goodbye, Metora the Sage of the End of the World. Welcome, Meteora the Totally Normal Writer.

Mr. Matsubara raises his eyebrow.

" _Are you serious?"_

I nod and open my Magic Book.

" _Just like Altair said, passion and despair, good wishes and bad wishes, were contained in the moment. I want to try writing a story like that myself. I want to see stories spread, I want to see what my story connects and what my story paints. I want to keep watching until the end of days."_

In other words, I want to become God. My path is clear now. If a Creator can become a Creation, perhaps a Creation can become a Creator.

" _But your magic is about to disappear, right?",_ Marine points out.

" _I don't need magic to create. All you need is passion and practice. Fate will decide the rest"._

With one gesture of my hand, the last remaining letters in the book disappear. That convinces everyone that my magic is gone for good.

Kidding, my magic is fine. It was a spell which made the words disappear, and I can make them return whenever I want. I can shoot fireballs, I can fly, I can summon tanks and warplanes, and now I have a rudimentary copy of Holopsicon's powers. Yes, at this very moment, I'm the mightiest person in the world. If I wanted, I could declare war on Humanity and win.

And yet, if experience has taught me one thing, is that I shouldn't be overconfident. I mustn't rush. Why distract myself with pointless conquests when godhood awaits?

But for that, I need time to rethink my strategy. Time to plan.

" _We've gathered all the documents you need to live in this world. I'll check them once more, to avoid any problems later",_ Kikuchihara says.

Goog, good. As I said, it's nice to have a loyal lackey inside the government.

" _The Countermeasures Council will be disbanded. This is our final task"_ , she continues. _"I have to finish it before I resign from office"._

Good, g… Wait! Did she say "resign"? WTF?

" _Kikuchihara, are you resigning from the ministry?"_ , a surprised Mr. Nakanogane asks.

" _It's a stable job. What a waste"_ , Matsubara mumbles. _"Where will you go after resigning?"_

Yes, that's what I want to know. If this puts my plans into jeopardy, I'm going to kill someone.

00000

In the end, I didn't need to murder anyone. Kikuchihara's new job may prove useful after all.

As the head of the Elimination Chamber Festival project, Kikuchihara made connections and her efforts impressed several companies. Now she works in the publishing industry, together with Mr. Matsubara, Mr. Takarada and Ms. Marine. Mr. Nakanogane, Ms. Suruga, Mr. Yatoji and even Onishi are also working in their own stories. Thanks to the popularity of the crossover, they are in great demand.

Each of the Creators is adapting to the situation in their own way.

Takarada is burning himself out, producing like crazy. Despite this, everyone agrees that the quality of his novels has improved. His Alicetaria is a more rounded character, the setting is less bleak, the story makes the world feel alive. He's just won another prize today. There's a crossover with Magical Slayer Mamika in the works, and he's talking with Matsubara about a collaboration.

Meanwhile, Matsubara himself and Marine have their hands full with the announcement of the new Vogelchevalier anime. I'm not sure it's good news; it will cover the least popular arcs in the light novel series, including the part where Charon becomes a defeatist emo.

Onishi has become "respectable" now that he's in charge of the plot of an anime based on the fandisc he devised for The Milky Way of a Starry Sky. Hoshikawa is doomed to wear that pornographic Chinese dress forever. As for his good old friend, Nakanogane is working on the sequel of Gigas Machina, but rumor is he's quite frustrated with the quality of his work during the crossover. Being beaten by a fanfic is a hard pill to swallow.

" _The plot we created, the foreshadowing, the characters, they were all no match for Altair, or the story known as Altair"_ , he confessed to Onishi. _"Honestly, that hurts me more than the destruction of the world"._

Suruga and Yatoji have their own stories to worry about. And Souta… Well, his drawing again. His art is awful but, hey, he's just a school kid. Better to waste his time on useless drawings than on drugs.

Interestingly, none of the Creators have ever considered stopping.

I mean, why would they stop? It's not as if they have every reason to believe that every time they write, real people are suffering and dying in another world. Oh, wait, yes, it is. Of all the authors involved, only Suruga admits her callousness. The rest live in cognitive dissonance.

Altair was right after all.

What about me, you ask? Oh, yes, I'm the protagonist. My fate is the most important of all.

 _Things started to settle down after I moved out of Marine's house._ I couldn't put up with her yaoi obsession any longer and now I live in my own flat. Paid with the government's money, of course. It was the least they could do after all my help in saving the country and the world. They also give me a state subsidy every month. It isn't much, but I don't have to work for the rest of my life.

The house is a bit lonely, though. I might buy a cat one of these days. I considered a dog, but villains don't have dogs.

 _I'm almost done with my novel._ Yes, a novel. I said I don't need to work, but that doesn't mean I'm idle. Becoming a real Creator is not just a hobby; it's the key to my future plans. Why rely on other people's poor writing skills when I, the one and only Meteora Österreich, can do their job better than them? Especially when it's my story we're talking about.

Yes, my story. The novel is a retelling of our adventure, with some tiny details changed to showcase my glorious role in the events. According to my numbers, half the book is me giving speeches. Isn't it wonderful?

But no novel can have an impact without an audience. So I need a platform. Thankfully, I already have an idea in mind.

 _I'm planning to submit it to the New Writer Award at Denko Publishing_. I feel bad for the other contestants. It isn't only that my work is clearly superior to every other novel in the world, but I've already reached an agreement with the company and they'll declare me the winner by default. I should thank Kikuchihara and the government for their continued support in this regard.

Some people may call this kind of backstage deal "cheating". I prefer calling it "networking".

 _But I'm having a hard time coming up with the title._ My first draft was called "The Merry Adventures of the Great Sage Meteora Österreich, Seeker of a Thousand Miles, and Her Band of Jolly Followers", but the publisher said it was horrible. They refuse to give me the prize if I don't change it.

As you can imagine, it's frustrating when you had an idea in mind and lesser people dare to correct it. It's even worse when I think about the competitors. I mean, have you seen the titles of Japanese light novels? "I Couldn't Become a Hero, So I Reluctantly Decided to Get a Job", "Being Able to Edit Skills in Another World, I Gained OP Waifus", "Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon", "I'm a successful light novel author at a boy's high school, but I'm being strangled by a female classmate who's a voice actress and is younger than me", etc.

I swear I'm not making them up. My title is quite normal in comparison.

But perhaps that's the problem. It's too normal. I should ask a degenerate otaku about their opinion; surely they'll be able to come up with a weird idea for a title.

Time to send Souta a message.

00000

" _Long time no see. This is Souta. I'm glad things have settled down for you. I've also just finished a piece for submission, blah, blah, blah..."_

Ugh. I don't care about your life. Give me the idea, dammit!

Oh.

This is definitely weird.

 _Re:Creators._

Isn't that like replying to a certain person or persons by email? Did he get the idea from there? Never mind. It's stupid. It's weird. It's exactly what I need.

Thank you very much, Souta. Now I can finish my submission.

The prize is just the first step. There are plans for an anime too. Given the copyright issues, some names and characters will have to be changed a bit, but in the end my role is the only thing that matters. Soon, millions around the world will have the chance to witness my wisdom and intelligence like never before. I'll become the most popular fictional character ever. With that popularity, I'll be able to gather enough acceptance to fulfill my divine ambitions.

And I'll need all that acceptance. I have yet to face the toughest challenges of my life.

Magane is out there. I only met her once, but given her subtle actions and her ability to stay under the radar for so long, she's a very intelligent foe. She knew that the key to get rid of Altair was to give her what she wanted. It won't be long before she realizes that her powers aren't going anywhere. I'm pretending to be powerless, but I don't think she will have such qualms. But where Altair favored brute force and overwhelming power, Shark Girl prefers more insidious means.

A battle of wits awaits. Whoever wins will reshape the world in her image and likeness.

But defeating Magane won't be enough. Beyond the walls of reality, a twin-headed goddess is creating a new multiverse of their own. Once I take over this reality, I won't be satisfied until I take theirs too. I'm coming for you, Altair. Vengeance shall be mine.

So, yeah, I need to become overpowered ASAP.

This novel is the key. So great. So awesome. And yet…

I can't help but remember that, despite having all the industry's support behind us, the audience ended up siding with the one-dimensional psycho. As Nakanogane said, a dumb fanfiction beat us all. What if that's what the people of this world want? What if they think that goody-two-shoes Meteora would never become an evil goddess? What if it ruins my ascension?

Think, Meteora, think.

My mind comes back to this work. My journal. My secret journal. My only real friend in these dark times, the only one I could be honest with. Whoever read it would have a very different impression of me. But if I showed it to my former servants, they would rebel.

Mm, what if I released it under a pen-name? If fans want fanfiction, perhaps Meteora Österreich can join their ranks too.

As I said, if you can't beat them…

Finally, I find the perfect place. A cesspool of decadence, depravity and yaoi. I make a fake profile, agree to the guidelines and go to the "New Story" tab. Story type, category… Ugh. I need to come up with a title again.

Thankfully, this time I don't have to defer to a foolish publisher. And I have the right title just in mind: " _The Secret Journal of Meteora Österreich"._

I type the title. I select the document. I enter the captcha.

And then I send it.

All hail fiction. All hail fanfiction. All hail the future Goddess-Empress of the Multiverse.

All hail me.

THE END

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

You expected a normal fanfic author writing this story. But it was me! Meteora Österreich!

This "Citsimsan" profile you see? I used my magic to create past stories and comments for it. With my proto-Holopsicon spell, I can rewrite the very fabric of reality (but not too much). For months, your reading my journal has given me the acceptance I need to take over the world!

Now nobody can say "You're wrong, Meteora wouldn't kick that adorable little puppy" or "Meteora sacrificing billions of souls to become an evil goddess is too out of character for her". Evil Meteora is part of the social imaginary now. Deal with it.

As for other minor things:

-I promised a release in September, and Meteora's word is absolute. Unfortunately, I came down with a serious eye illness. I could have healed it with a spell, of course, but then everyone around me would have found out that I didn't lost my magic. Thus, I had to endure the long and tiresome process of mundane health care. I'm much better, don't worry; no stupid sickness is going to stop my evil plans of evilness.

-Yes, I called Altair "Setsuna's ego". What did you expect? Let's be honest, that Mutated Mop was basically all the dark, edgy stuff that was inside Setsuna's soul made real. What a pain.

This is the end of the story. Thank you all, my servants… I mean, my beloved readers. Without you, this publication wouldn't have been possible. See you soon!


End file.
